A Trainer's Journey
by Champion Jack
Summary: Jack sets off on a journey as a rookie Pokemon Trainer, accompanied by fellow rookie Trainer, Karen, challenging Gym Leaders for badges, and eventually taking on the nefarious organization, Team Rocket. Based on the events of the FRLG games.
1. A Journey's Beginning

Chapter 1: A Journey's Beginning

Hey, guys, this is my first fic, and I'd like to know what you think about it. If you want me to continue it, then leave a review saying so. If not, then review anyway

Now, without further adieu, I present to you _A Trainer's Journey_.

Enjoy.

* * *

The roar of the crowd was deafening. I jumped, startled that I was suddenly in a stadium, with an audience cheering me on. Cheering for what, exactly? Well, I found myself in the middle of a battle I didn't remember starting. But I didn't have much time to think about that as the opponent called a command to their Venusaur from across the battle field. "Venusaur, Sleep Powder!"

Only then did I take notice of the six-foot-five, orange dragon-looking creature in front of me, seemingly awaiting my command. His large, orange wings looked powerful enough to lift him high into the air. Or blow something away. "Charizard, quick, blow that Sleep Powder back!"

Charizard flapped his mighty wings and blewthe purple-blue powder back at the Venusaur. "Venusaur, don't breath it in!" the other Trainer called out. Venusaur took a deep breath and held it.

"Now get out of there!" On command, Venusaur lumbered out of the sleep-inducing cloud of powder and into a powder-free area, where she let out the breath.

Seeing an opening, I shouted, "Charizard, into the air and use Flamethrower!" Charizard flapped his wings again and lifted himself into up before he took in a deep breath and let it out, spewing a red-hot column of flames to the opposing Grass-and Poison-type.

But the opponent had a counter-attack planned. "Light Screen!" Venusaur tensed her body and a wall of yellow light materialized in front of her. Charizard's attack hit the Light Screen, tongues of flame lashing out. Behind the flames I could see Venusaur struggling to keep it up. Some of Charizard's Flamethrower might be getting past and injuring her, but it clearly wasn't nearly enough.

Seeing that the attack was useless, I gave Charizard an order. "Charizard, get in close and use Dragon Claw!" Charizard stopped his attack and folded in his wings, diving for the Grass-type, his right claws glowing a deep blue. He slashed at the Venusaur, and she jerked to the side at the last second, leaving Charizard to zoom past before she could counter-attack.

"Again!"

Charizard came around for another slash at Venusaur, but he anticipated Venusaur's evasion and moved to the side just as she did. Charizard hit his mark, leaving a long gash in Venusaur's flank, blood a thin streak of blood painting the floor.

Just as Charizard was about to strike, though, the other Trainer shouted. "Vine Whip!"

Green vines shot out of the plant on Venusaur's back and wrapped themselves around Charizard before he could break away.

"Charizard, cut the vines away!" I shouted across the field, a hint of panic in my voice. But it was no use. The vines had completely wrapped around Charizard, pinning his arms to his body. As Charizard tried to move his arms to slash at them, the other Trainer gave another command.

"Sleep Powder!"

"No!" I shouted, now panicking. If Charizard fell asleep, then the battle would be pretty much over. I didn't know how I knew, but this was a very important battle, judging by the audience crowding the stadium and the cameras pointed at us.

More of the purple-blue powder came out of the flower on Venusaur's back. Charizard inhaled it and he immediately became drowsy, and within seconds, he was fast asleep. "Now, Venusaur! Sludge Bomb!"

"Charizard, wake up!" I screamed, but it was no use.

Venusaur opened her mouth and several balls of purple sludge came flying out, flying straight towards a sleeping Charizard. Right before the attack hit, Venusaur released Charizard from his imprisonment in the vines. Upon impact, the Poison attack sent Charizard flying backwards and falling heavily to the ground. At such close a range, the attack did a lot of damage. But, fortunately, the sheer force of the impact from the Sludge Bomb woke Charizard from his slumber. He stood up and gave a mighty roar, spewing flames from his mouth, and the spectators went crazy, cheering me and Charizard on.

"Alright Charizard, let's finish this. Take to the sky!" I said, pumping a fist into the air. Charizard took off into the sky and hovered there as I gave the next command. "Fly straight towards Venusaur, and use Fire Blast!" Charizard folded his wings and dived, opening his jaws for the attack.

In an almost panicked voice, the other Trainer gave their command. "Venusaur, Solar Beam!" The voice sounded so familiar, I knew I had heard it before, knew that I knew the person the voice belonged to, but I could not for the life of me remember who exactly it was.

At the Trainer's command, tiny particles of light started collecting in Venusaur's flower, until a sizable ball of energy formed. Just as Charizard loosed his attack from his jaws, a stream of flame twice as big as the Flamethrower ending in a five-pointed figure flying at Venusaur, Venusaur bent her front legs and straightened her hind legs, aiming the flower with the seed in the center, indicating that she was indeed female, at the incoming Charizard. The ball of light energy formed at the center of the flower exploded forward, becoming a beam of veritable solar power, colliding in mid-air with the Fire Blast as Charizard was not twenty feet away. The resulting explosion rocked the battlefield, sending a shockwave throughout the stadium, and when the shockwave hit me I had to fight to keep my balance. The flash of light from the mid-air explosion had momentarily blinded me, but when my vision cleared, I saw that a cloud of dust had been kicked up, obscuring our Pokemon from view, so I couldn't seen which one was still standing. I waited nervously as the smoke cleared, biting my lip and clenching my hands into tight fists, anxious to see whether I had won or lost. The smoke finally cleared after what seemed to be an hour, which was actually only like eight seconds, and the Pokemon still standing was-

* * *

The morning sunlight filtered through the window in my room, bathing my face in golden light, rousing me from my deep slumber. I grunted and turned on my side, away from the sunlight, pulling the covers over my head in an attempt to hide from the sun's rays. I fell asleep once more, this time dreaming about going to get my starter Pokemon on my eleventh birthday.

Then the neighbor's Dodrio from down the street crowed, and the sound could be heard throughout the entirety of the small coastal town of Pallet. I opened my eyes and cursed that Dodrio, always waking me up so early in the morning. And whenever I wake up, I just can't go back to sleep, no matter what.

To hell with it, I'd try any way.

I lay on my stomach on my bed and closed my eyes, trying to go back to sleep. A few minutes later my moms voice drifted up the stairs and reached my ears. "Jack, wake up or you'll be late!"

I uttered a simple grunt. A couple more minutes later, my eyes snapped open.

"Oh, damn, today's the day!" I cried. I jumped out of bed and ran towards my closet. Unfortunately, I still had the sheets of my bed on me, and they tangled themselves around my legs. And I fell.

"Crap!" I jumped back up and, kicking the sheets off of my legs, I hurried over to my closet and opened it. There, hanging inside, was the outfit I had set out for my journey.

A long time ago, back when they first established the rules, the Pokemon League stated that the first of May of the year that a kid turned ten was when could obtain his license, even if they weren't officially ten years old yet. Kids were allowed to have Pokemon, so long as they only had them as pets, but they weren't allowed to battle them competitively, not until they got their Trainer Licenses, and even then they had to wait until their tenth birthday. Then, with permission to battle Pokemon, they could go out on journeys of their own, if they wanted. Pretty much all of them did. In fact, only one kid in my class at the academy didn't, but that was because he wanted to become a researcher under Professor Oak. Some of the ones that do go on journeys said they were going to take the League challenge- earn eight Badges from Gym Leader in each major city in the region- to become the Champion. Others, though, usually decide to just travel with their Pokemon.

But, some time ago, I'm not sure how long, the Pokemon League started getting complaints from parents of children about to start their journeys, about how they thought ten was too young to travel the world alone. So, in order to calm the parents, the League bumped the age up to eleven, as if that was much of change.

Two other friends of mine had already gotten their licenses before me, but they wanted to wait until I got mine so we could leave Pallet Town together. My birthday was earlier this month, on July 16, and I finally got my license yesterday, the 30, and on my first try.

And now, today was the day when I can actually start my journey. But I could not for the life of me choose one of the starters: Charmander, Bulbasaur, or Squirtle. They all looked like cool Pokemon to have. I had imagined myself in several battle scenarios with each of the Pokemon, torching opponents with Charmander, drenching enemies with Squirtle, and whipping foes with Bulbasaur, but I still couldn't decide. In the end, I thought that I would see the starters for myself, and then maybe I could decide.

I plucked my outfit off of the hangar and brought it over to my bed. I stripped down (only to my boxers, of course), and put on the outfit. After tying the shoes, I walked over to my closet and closed it so I could see myself in the mirror hanging on the door. I wore a red button shirt with black sleeves and a white collar and white trimming along the where the buttons met. My jeans were a light blue, my shoes black on the lower half and red on top. I had the cap that completed the outfit in my hand, and I put it on. The hat was red, and the bill was white. There was also a small half-Pokeball logo in the center where the bill met the cap.

I looked at myself for a while, making sure nothing was out of place. Once I was sure everything was alright, I turned and walked out of room, down the stairs and into the kitchen, where my mom was making breakfast.

"Hey, mom, have you seen my backpack?" I asked her. "I have to get to Professor Oak's lab to get my starter."

"Aren't you going to eat first, Jack?" she asked, placing some bacon on a platter.

"Can't, Mom, gotta go or others will take all of the starters, and I won't be able to get on for me!" I said.

"Well, you can't expect to go on your journey with an empty stomach, can you?" she asked, waving the spatula she was using to make the eggs at me.

"But I really have to go, Mom!" I protested.

"Come on, Jack, a little bacon can't hurt, right? Besides, if you want to go on a Pokemon journey and be a successful Trainer, like your father and I used to before I met him, then you have to keep up your strength. Right, Pikachu?" The little electric mouse looked up from it's bowl and nodded in affirmation before going back to eating. "Now, come on, sit."

Before I was born, years before, my mom had gone on a journey, much like the one I was about to start, and my dad did, too. They both became rather well-known Trainers. They had both won all eight badges from each Gym around Kanto and had managed to get to the semi-finals of the Pokemon League, where they lost against each of their opponents. My parents later got a divorce, and my dad went to a far away region, and became a Gym Leader there, where he specialized in Normal-types. When he left, my dad had also taken my brother with him, although I was far too young to remember any of this; I was only three when he left, and my brother two. I sometimes wonder if he knows that he has brother, as my mom never mentioned if my dad had told him. Now, my mom still has one of the Pokemon that traveled with her on her journey, her Pikachu, a Pokemon I grew up with. She had told me when I was younger that, when she had settled down with my dad to start a family, she had given all of her Pokemon to a friend who lived in Johto, a Professor: her starter, Blastoise, and Nidoqueen, Clefable, Ninetails, and Lapras.

I stared at the bacon intently, suddenly ravenous. I guess my Mom had a point. I mean, parents aren't always wrong, right? She had some good logic. "I guess a little bacon couldn't hurt."

I grabbed a plate and piled some on, and Mom placed some eggs on it and poured me orange juice. I wolfed it all down, and within a couple minutes, it was all gone. I stood and headed for the door. "Alright, Mom, I'm heading out to the Professor's. I'll be back."

"Promise you'll come back before you leave?" She asked.

"Yes, Mom, I promise," I sighed. "Bye!" I walked out the door and closed it behind me. I went down the street, heading for the lab, which was the tallest building in Pallet, its domed roof visible anywhere in town. Along the way, a few people greeted me. Almost everyone in town knew each other. In a town as small as Pallet, it was hard not to.

I strolled down the road, looking at all the wild Pokemon that appeared from the brush. A lone Spearow looked at me and flew off, undoubtedly in search of breakfast. I flock of Pidgeotto and Pidgey took flight, led by a rare Pidgeot. I stopped and watched as the bird Pokemon flew off, watching as the Pidgeot flapped its powerful wings and its long, majestic, red-and-orange crest flapped in the wind as it flew. It was without a question a graceful and beautiful Pokemon, coveted by Coordinators. Once the flock disappeared over the treetops, I continued on to my destination. After a bit more walking, a Rattata poked its head out of a bush and looked back and forth, sniffing the air. It spotted an Oran Berry in front of it, and the Rattata quickly snatched it up before disappearing back into the bush.

A few minutes later, I arrived at the foot of the long stairwell leading up the Professor's lab. No longer able to contain my excitement, I sprinted up the long stairs. I reached the top just as I started to wheeze. I stood at the top of the stairs, bent over, hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath. After I was able to breath normally, I walked as calmly as I could to the door and opened it, stepping inside. The building was pleasantly air conditioned, and I kept going towards the back of the lab, where Professor Oak's office was.

"Jack! Good to see you, my boy!" The Professor stepped from behind his desk and came to where I was standing at the entrance of his office to give me a hug. "Today's the day you get your starter Pokemon. Are you excited?"

"Of course I am," I responded.

"Well, come on. I'll show you the Pokemon."

He led me further into his office. I noticed that there was someone else in the room. He also wore an outfit that he had chosen for his journey. He wore a black collared shirt, purple jeans, black shoes, and had a pouch hanging around his waist, facing forward, to store his items. His hair was its usual, spiked up and rather messy. "Gary," I greeted him, giving a nod.

He looked at me and smirked before saying, "Hey, the loser's finally here! About time, Jack, I've had my License for a month and I'm itching to get my Pokemon already!" He eagerly looked over at the professor, who now held three Pokeballs.

"Okay, boys, here I have three Pokeballs, each containing one Pokemon. You're free to choose whichever one you want." He clicked the button on the center if each ball, and they snapped open, three Pokemon standing at our feet almost immediately after.

"Which one do you want, Gary?" I asked him.

"Whichever one is strongest," he responded.

I looked at the three starters, and weighed the choices. The Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle just looked back at me. Charmander was a Fire-type, which meant it had an advantage over Grass-, Bug-, Steel-, and Ice-type Pokemon, but it was weak against Ground-, Rock-, and Water-types. Bulbasaur was a dual Grass- and Poison-type, meaning it had an advantage over Rock-, Ground-, Water-, and Grass-types, but didn't do well against Psychic-, Fire-, Flying-, and Ice-types. Squirtle, a Water-type, was strong against Rock-, Ground-, and Fire-types, but was weak against Grass- and Electric-types.

But before I could choose one, the Squirtle looked over at Gary, stared at him for a bit, then walked over to him. It jumped down from the table and rubbed itself against its leg.

"Well, then, Gary, it seems that Squirtle has taken a liking to you," Professor Oak said with a smile.

"Yeah, I noticed," Gary said, looking down at the Squirtle. "He looks pretty strong, I choose Squirtle."

Upon hearing Gary's decision, Squirtle jumped in up into his arms, nuzzling his chest.

I looked over the remaining Charmander and Bulbasaur. The Charmander looked at me, and the second our eyes met, I felt a click in my head. I now knew who I would choose for my starter Pokemon. The Charmander's eyes lit up and he walked over, jumped off the table, and stopped at my feet, looking up at me. I picked him up and it climbed up onto my shoulder, where it batted at my hat.

"It looks like you've made your choice, Jack," Professor Oak remarked.

"Actually, Professor, it looks like Charmander made his choice," I said, scratching Charmander on his head from his perch on my shoulder. I glanced at the Bulbasaur, and noticed that it was looking down, ears drooping, looking dejected. I approached the Bulbasaur and crouched to meet it at eye level. "Don't be so down, Bulbasaur, I'm sure someone will pick you. You just need to be patient." I smiled, and the Bulbasaur instantly cheered up, giving a sound that sounded like a purr.

"Good boy." I patted its head, and it gave me an irritated look. "Hey, what's with look?"

"Jack."

I looked at Professor Oak. "Yeah?"

"This particular Bulbasaur is a female." the Professor said.

"It is?" I looked at the Bulbasaur, and it was still looking at me with that same aggravated look. I smiled at her apologetically, saying, "Sorry, Bulbasaur."

"Idiot," Gary coughed, smirking. Squirtle was now at his feet, staring up at him in admiration. I was surprised that Squirtle had grown to liking Gary so quickly upon just having met him. I guess Gary was a natural Trainer.

I shot him a glare. I didn't know what his problem was with me, hell, with everyone. He was always acting rude towards anyone, whether he knew them or not. I guess the fact that Professor Oak was his grandfather made him think that he was superior to everyone else. With good reason, I guess. Whenever the school we went to held some mock, practice battles, Gary always won, no matter who he was up against, including me.

I turned back to Bulbasaur. "Good girl, then," I said, patting her on the head again. At this, Bulbasaur went back to her happy self.

"Well, now that you've chosen your starters, follow me, boys." The Professor walked to the back of his office, Gary trailing behind. "Remember, Bulbasaur, patience," I said to her before following.

At the back of his office, the Professor stopped at a table that held three sets of five Pokeballs and a red, rectangular device. The Professor turned and addressed us. "As you can see, boys, I have here three sets of five Pokeballs and a Pokedex-"

"Hey, Gramps, what the hell's a Pokedex?" Gary rudely interrupted.

"Be patient, Gary, I'm getting there," the Professor sighed. "And watch your language, son."

"Sure, Gramps," Gary muttered, looking away.

"Now, where was I… ah, yes. A Pokedex"-he picked up one of the devices-"is an encyclopedia of Pokemon, of my own design. It holds information on all Pokemon in the Kanto region. Whenever you encounter a Pokemon you've never seen, just take this out, aim it at a Pokemon, and it will scan the particular Pokemon. It will then give you information on it, such as its name, preferred habitat, diet, and so on, even the moves it currently knows. Here, let me give you a little demonstration." The Professor pressed a button on top of the Pokedex and it flipped open. He lifted it and aimed it at Charmander on my shoulder. The red device whirred and a few seconds later, a mechanical woman's voice came from it. "Charmander, the Lizard Pokemon. The flame that burns at the tip of its tail is an indication of its emotions. The flame wavers when Charmander is happy, and blazes when enraged."

"Charmander's current moves are Scratch, Tail Whip, and Ember. He's young, so he doesn't have many moves. But once you get to training Charmander, he will learn more powerful moves." The Professor picked up the other Pokedex from the table and handed them over to us, one for each. " Here you go, boys. Take good care of them, they'll prove wonderful companions. And take these, too." He handed us the five Pokeballs. I slipped the Pokedex into my pocket, making a mental note to put it in my backpack later, and took the Pokeballs. Most Trainers had a special belt that they could use to store their Pokeballs when not using them. Along one side were six raised circular indentations with like five powerful magnets in them. All a Trainer had to do was move their Pokeball into the indents and the magnets would hold them in place so that there was no chance of them falling off. I clipped my spare Pokeballs to mybelt like I had been taught, Gary doing the same. "You can use those to catch any other Pokemon you see, but remember to battle and weaken them first, because they may break out if you just throw it at them."

"Thanks, Professor."

"Thanks, Gramps."

"So who are those other Pokeballs and Pokedex for?" I asked.

"I got word that another child was coming to receive their starter, too. So that person may choose you, Bulbasaur," the Professor told the Bulbasaur, and she shook her body in anticipation.

My eyes widened. That's right, my other friend as getting a starter today, too! Must have been so excited that I forgot.

"Here are your Pokemon's Pokeball, boys," the Professor handed us a Pokeball each. I took Charmander's and reached up, plucking Charmander from his perch. I set him on the ground and pressed a button on the ball, enlarging it and aiming it at Charmander. "Return," I said, and a beam of red light shot out from the center, hitting Charmander, turning it into energy, and withdrawing him into his Pokeball, all in less than a second.

"Cool," I said, holding the ball up to my face. I found it amazing that this little ball could turn a Pokemon into pure energy and store it inside, all without changing its weight. I clipped Charmander's Pokeball to my belt like the five others before it, Gary mirroring my actions, and looked back at the Professor.

"Alright, boys, you've gotten your starters, extra Pokeballs, and Pokedexes. You're ready to begin your adventures. Now, off you go into the world of Pokemon!"

"Alright, Gramps, Jack, smell ya later. I'm off!" Gary walked out of the office and out of the lab.

I was about to go when the Professor stopped me. "Promise me you'll be careful, Jack."

"I will."

"You're all your mother has now, after your father left." I looked down at that, a little dejected. "I'm not going to lie to you, Jack. The world isn't always a nice place. People _will _try to take advantage of you. Whatever you do, don't let them. Be careful, I don't want you getting hurt." He paused, searching for some words. I could see that he genuinely cared about me, even though we weren't related. "I've known your mother since she set out on her own journey. She always was a positive person, always happy. Sure, she got into some scrapes now and again, but she always pulled through. Having your father around was a definite help.

"I truly delighted in seeing your mother so happy when you were born. You mean the world to your mother, Jack. I would feel horrible if something were to happen to you. Just promise me you'll take care of yourself."

"Don't worry, Professor, I will."

He smiled warmly. "Good. Now, don't let me hold you back from your journey."

I was about to go when I turned to the Professor. "Thanks, Professor. For all of this."

"Don't mention, Jack. It was my pleasure. I always enjoy seeing the enthusiasm of kids when they receive their starting Pokemon and set off on their adventure. Now run along, Jack. Go off on your very own adventure, and remember to enjoy yourself and the friendship that the Pokemon I'm sure you'll catch will share with you!"

I nodded and smiled. "You got it, Professor." I walked out of the lab and hurried down the steps in front of the building. Once at the bottom, I broke into a run, heading towards home, remembering my promise to my mom to go home before setting off. Besides, I had forgotten my backpack at home, so I had to go back anyway. I couldn't believe this was happening. I just got my first Pokemon, my Charmander, and was about to go on my journey as a Pokemon Trainer. A dream that every kid has growing up. A minute or so later, I stopped in front of my home. I ran up to the door and opened it, stepping inside.

"Hey, Mom, I'm here, just as I promised!" I shouted once inside.

Mom stepped out from the kitchen, drying her hands on her apron. "Jack, how'd it go? Did you get your starting Pokemon?"

"Yep." I plucked Charmander's Pokeball from my belt and enlarged, and it popped open. A white light spilled from the depths of the ball and fell on the carpet at my feet, where it solidified into a shape and the light faded, revealing my new Charmander, all in a split second.

"Oh, so you got a Charmander," Mom said flatly.

I looked at her. 'What, you don't like my Charmander?" _Oh, how cool it feels to say that! _I thought.

"No, it's not that, it's just…" Mom paused, sighed, and continued. "I was kinda hoping that you were going to pick Squirtle."

"Like you did, Mom?"

"Yeah."

"Don't be sad, Mom, I have nothing against Squirtle, honestly, but Charmander and I picked each other, if that makes sense," I explained.

"It's makes total sense," Mom reassured me. "The same thing happened with me and my Blastoise when I picked him as my starter when he was a Squirtle." Suddenly, her eyes started to water.

"Mom, what's wrong?" I asked, concerned.

"My Jack's growing up," she said, embracing me in a tight hug.

"Come on, Mom, don't cry," I said, hugging her back. "You knew this day was coming."

"I know, but it's one thing knowing it will happen, and something else when it actually happens," Mom said.

A few moments of silence passed before I spoke. "Mom, can I go now?"

Mom pulled away from the hug, wiping at her eyes. "Sure, Jack, it's your time. But before you leave," she added as I turned to leave, Charmander trailing behind me.

I turned back to my mom as she reached behind the couch and lifted my backpack before handing it to me. I had actually forgotten about my backpack again, and it was one if the reasons I had come back home. "Can't forget this," Mom said.

"Of course not." I put the yellow backpack on. "Okay, Mom, I'm off. Wish me luck."

Mom hugged me tightly once more, saying, "Don't forget to call whenever you can."

"I won't, Mom." She let me go and I headed for the door. "Bye, Mom." Great, now I was tearing up. I blinked the tears away and smiled before returning Charmander to his Pokeball. I waved a goodbye to my mom, and she waved back, and I walked out the door, down the few steps at the front of the house, and walked around the corner of my home, heading for the path that would lead out of town.

As I turned the corner, I saw someone was turning the corner, too, but I saw them too late and bumped into them. As I was bigger then they were, I was able to stay on my feet, even though I stumbled back a bit, but the other person fell to the floor. They let out a cry of surprise when they hit and I looked at the newcomer. I immediately recognized her.

She was wearing a new outfit, a light blue sleeve-less tank top with a black collar and a black circle below it, a yellow bag hanging from her slender frame. She had a rather short, red skirt that came to about mid-thigh, socks the same shade of blue as her top that came to her shin, and red-and-white shoes. On her head was a white hate with a pink half-Pokeball symbol, located in the same area as on my own hat. She looked pretty good in that outfit. She was my friend, Karen. "Ow! Hey, why don't watch where you're-" She looked up at me and stopped. "Jack! It's you!"

"Hi, Karen. Here, let me help you," I offered, extending my hand for her to take hold.

"Hey, where were you earlier?" I asked as she dusted off her bag. "We agreed to all be there when we got our starters."

"I know, I know!" she said, adjusting her hat. "I overslept!"

"Well, you ruined the moment, y'know."

She only stuck out her tongue before grinning. "Check it out, I got new clothes!"

Karen gave a little twirl, her skirt fluttering about. "Like it?"

"Looks nice."

"Thank you," she said with a giggle. "Oh, hey, you got a starter!"

I grinned. "Sure did."

"Ooh, can I see it, Jack? I'll show you my Pokemon, too!" she pleaded. She took a Pokeball from her own belt and opened it, releasing the Pokemon from within. The white light faded to reveal a Bulbasaur. "Bulba!" it cried.

"Alright, here's mine." I took Charmander's Pokeball, enlarged it, and released Charmander at my feet.

"Ooh, you picked Charmander! It' so cute!" Karen fawned over Charmander.

Bulbasaur let out a huff.

"Of course you're cute, too, Bulbasaur."

Bulbasaur smiled and walked over to Charmander. She extended a vine from the bulb on her back and held it up to Charmander, who in turn high-fived it.

"Oh, look, Jack, they're already friends!"

"I think they were friends already, since Professor Oak raised them both," I said, watching as our Pokemon played with each other. "So you got the last one, huh? Gary and I got the other two, so we left you with Bulbasaur. Sorry if you wanted another Pokemon," I added, looking over at Karen.

"Oh, no, don't worry about it, I wanted Bulbasaur all along. Okay, so, if I have Bulbasaur, and you have Charmander, then Gary has Squirtle?"

"That's right," someone said behind us. We turned and Gary was strolling towards us, Squirtle at his heels. "So, little girl, you got Bulbasaur, did ya?"

"Yes, I chose Bulbasaur. And dammit, Gary, I am not a little girl, I'm older than you!" she protested. It was true. Gary was the youngest of the three of us, if only by a few days. Karen was the oldest, born on April 17, me on July 16, and Gary on the 25. Gary ignored her protests and looked at me.

"Well, Jack, I'm heading off now," he said smugly, smirking, his Squirtle having gone off to join in the frolicking of Charmander and Bulbasaur. "I'm going to Viridian and challenging the Gym there, and I'll get my first badge, before the two of you. Smell ya later, kiddies! Come on, Squirtle!" He ran off, calling his Pokemon. Squirtle left the play of the two other Pokemon reluctantly and followed after his Trainer.

"Damn, he _really _gets on my nerves. Where the hell does he get off calling us _kiddies_?" Karen fumed.

"C'mon, Karen, don't let him get to you. He's just being a jackass, like he usually is," I consoled her.

"Oh, I know, but it's hard when he's always insulting me like that," she sighed. She was suddenly back to her cheery self again. "Say, Jack, we're both starting on our journeys today. Why don't we travel together? Well, that is, if we're going in the same direction. Are we going in the same direction?"

"Well, the only thing south of here is the ocean, so, yeah, I guess we're going in the same direction."

"Then it's settled! We travel together! Alright, Bulbasaur, return!" Bulbasaur, with a look that combined her reluctance to leave the play and her eagerness to begin the adventure, was returned to Pokeball in a beam of red light. I returned Charmander to his Pokeball and Karen and I clipped our Pokemon's respective Pokeballs to our belts.

"Well, then, shall we go now?" I asked her.

"Let's go, off to Viridian City!" Karen cheered, and I merely smiled at her eagerness. We walked along the path like Gary had, and soon we arrived at the outskirts of Pallet Town. We stopped and I looked over at Karen, who suddenly seemed nervous, previous eagerness gone.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

She just smiled at me, shook her head, and said, "It's nothing, I just…I've never gone out of Pallet Town alone before. I'm so excited to go on a journey of my own, believe me, but I'm also a bit nervous."

"I understand," I comforted her. "I'm nervous, too. But you don't have to be. And you're never alone, Karen. You'll always have your Pokemon with you. And I'm here, too" I smiled comfortingly.

Karen smiled back. "Yeah, you're right, Jack. I'll always have my Pokemon with me." She looked at the lone Pokeball at her belt, then back at me. "Well, let's quit the chatter and get the show on the road!"

But, before we could take a step, someone was shouting towards us. "Hey, Jack! Karen!"

We turned and Gary's older sister, Daisy, came running up to us. "Have you guys seen Gary? I have something to give him, and I was hoping to catch him before he left to give it to him."

"Sorry, Daisy," I said. "You just missed him, he already took off towards Viridian a few minutes ago."

"Damn! That boy is always so impatient to start anything." She sighed. "I guess it can't be helped."

"Hey, I could take it to him, if you want," I volunteered.

"You would?"

"Sure. I mean Karen and I were going to Viridian anyway, so we could give him whatever it is you want to give him when see him,"

"Thank you, Jack," Daisy said. She reached into her shoulder bag and pulled out a cloth package. She gave it to me, and I was surprised at how heavy it was.

"Whoa, this thing is heavy. What is it?"

"Open it," Daisy prompted.

I glanced at Karen and she shrugged. I unwrapped the package to reveal it was three town maps, the newer editions that were encased in a metal case to protect the maps from wear and tear. "Whoa, cool! Town maps! But why are three of them?"

"Because two for them are for you and Karen." Daisy responded, smiling.

"Really? Whoa, thanks Daisy," Karen said, taking one of the maps. "But where did you get them? I heard they were expensive."

"Oh, I have a friend who had too many of them, so he gave me some when I asked him," Daisy explained.

"Thanks for the maps, Daisy," I said, swinging my backpack around and opened it to placed my map inside. I rewrapped Gary's and put it inside, too, and Karen put hers away in her bag. "Don't fret, Daisy, I'll get the map to Gary when we see him."

"Thank you, Jack, Karen. Good luck on your journey, guys," she said, waving, before heading back into town. We waved back, and faced the wilderness outside of Pallet.

"Well, let's go before anyone else interrupts us," I said, starting forward.

"Here we go. Look out world, you're about to be taken by storm by the invincible duo of Jack and Karen!" Karen pumped a fist in the air, and I couldn't help but laugh at her eager antics.

Together, Karen and I set off into the wilderness north of Pallet Town known as Route 1.

* * *

**Author's Note: **I case you were wondering, Jack, Karen, and Gary are based off of the male and female player characters and the rival, respectively, from the FireRed and LeafGreen games

EDIT: As of August 19, 2013, 3:03 AM, I have rewritten and updated this initial chapter of A Trainer's Journey. It's not a whole lot different from the original chapter, I only added a few things, but I think it's better.


	2. A New Partner

Hey, guys, Champion Jack here, with Chapter 2, as promised .

But first, since I forgot to do it in the last chapter, I'll do it now.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or anything affiliated with it. Pokemon is the property of Satoshi Tajiri, Game Freak, and Nintendo. Besides, if I did own Pokemon, Gary wouldn't have such a goddamn annoying voice, Ash would actually have a _male_ as his voice, and, Ash and May would already be a happy couple, and so would Pikachu and May's Glaceon.

But enough of that. I'll let you read this thing already.

Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 2: A New Partner

As Karen and I walked on along the path winding through the wilderness of Route 1, we spotted several wild Pokemon. Karen-and me, too, admittedly-was hoping to see a whole bunch of different kind of Pokemon, but all we seemed to see were Rattata or Pidgey. And even then, it was only occasionally, surprisingly. We would see a Rattata scurry from one side of the road to the other, a Pidgey fly off, or several taking off. We once saw two Rattata romping around, but when we got closer, they scurried off, hiding in the bushes.

Walking along the dirt path, looking around at the seemingly endless trees as far as the eyes could see, I suddenly remembered something. "Damn," I said, stopping.

"What?" Karen said.

I reached into my jeans pocket and fished out the Pokedex. "I just thought I'd better put this in my backpack," I said, taking off my backpack and opening it. I placed the Pokedex inside, among the other stuff my mom packed: and extra set of clothes, pajamas that consisted of a plain white T-shirt and black shorts, and a sleeping bag that could be folded to fit inside a backpack like mine.

I zipped it up and swung around, putting it on. I looked back up the path just as there was a fluttering of wings and some dirt was kicked up. A Pidgey had landed just a few yards in front of us.

"Ooh, a Pidgey!" Karen whispered. "It's so cute!" She drew one of the empty Pokeballs Professor Oak had given her and enlarged it, pulling her arm back to throw it when I stopped her by grabbing her arm. "Jack?"

"Remember what Professor Oak said?" I whispered to her. "He said to not throw a Pokeball at a perfectly healthy Pokemon, or it might escape. Try battling it first with Bulbasaur."

"Oh, right. Okay," Karen put the empty Pokeball back in her bag and plucked her Bulbasaur's Pokeball form her belt. "Go, Bulbasaur!"

The Pidgey jumped at the sudden noise, and Bulbasaur emerged from the Pokeball in a flash. "Alright, Bulbasaur, use…uhh," Karen trailed of.

"Use your Pokedex," I said.

"Okay," she pulled out her Pokedex, opened it, and aimed it at Bulbasaur. All this time, the Pidgey just stood there, looking at Bulbasaur, head cocked to the side. "Okay, this thing says that Bulbasaur's moves are Tackle, Growl, and Vine Whip,"

"Then battle the Pidgey before it goes away," I prompted.

"Bulbasaur, Tackle!" Karen ordered.

Bulbasaur charged forward and slammed into the Pidgey, who squawked in surprise and fell back. It quickly got back up, a look of fierce determination on its face. It charged forward with its own Tackle, but Karen gave a command for Bulbasaur to dodge it. Bulbasaur deftly jumped to the right as Pidgey rushed harmlessly past.

"Bulbasaur, Growl!" Karen gave her command. Bulbasaur sat on her haunches and let out a cute and endearing growl, which cause the Pidgey to blink in confusion, wondering why its opponent suddenly sat down.

"Now, while it's distracted! Tackle!" Bulbasaur suddenly rushed forward from her sitting position and tackled the wild Pidgey again, knocking it to the ground. The Pidgey jumped back up, and I saw that it was beginning to tire-it was a young Pokemon, after all- and it flapped into the air. At first I thought it was going to fly away, but on the contrary, it started flapping its wings vigorously, sending gusts of wind straight at Bulbasaur, who recoiled from the attack, hunkering down in an attempt to keep from being blown away.

"Oh, no, Pidgey's using Gust!" I cried in alarm. "Gust's a Flying-type move! It's doing a lot of damage against your Bulbasaur, a Grass-type! Quick Karen, give it another command!"

Without skipping a beat, Karen shouted, "Bulbasaur, Vine Whip!" Two dark green tendrils shot out of the bulb on Bulbasaur's back and sped towards the Gusting Pidgey, wrapping themselves around the wild Pokemon. The Pidgey squawked in protest at being imprisoned and tried to flap away, but it was futile as the vines had also wrapped around he wild Pokemon's wings, pinning them to its body, so it couldn't stay airborne. It plummeted to earth, but Bulbasaur held it up before it could hit the ground. She lifted the Pidgey up high then slammed her down on the ground, the she did it again, and a third time. After the third time, Bulbasaur let go of the injured Pidgey, who weakly tried to get up again, supporting itself on its wings. But it was to weak, and it fell back down.

"Okay, here's my chance," Karen said, serious now and earlier giddiness gone. She took out an empty Pokeball, enlarged it, and threw it at the weakened Pidgey. The Pidgey was to injured to do nothing but watch as the Pokeball zoomed towards it, hitting it in the head, snapping open, and sucking it in. The Pokeball dropped to the ground and shook. And shook. And shook. And kept shaking.

_That Pidgey sure is a fighter, weak as it is_, I thought, watching anxiously as the Pokeball kept shaking. I glanced over at Karen. She was biting her lip, clenching her fists so tightly the knuckles were white. I looked back at the shaking Pokeball. Amazingly, it was still shaking, even after thirty seconds.

Finally, it stopped moving, and the flashing light on the button on the front of the ball stopped. I noticed Karen visibly relax when I looked at her. She stood there, staring at the Pokeball in shock. Only after my prodding her in the elbow did she move forward to pick it up. She held the ball containing her newly caught Pidgey. She turned to looked at me, and the shocked expression on her face gave way to a big grin. "I caught a Pidgey!" she screamed, the scream resonating throughout the wilderness.

She looked at me, excitement lighting her face. I couldn't help but find that expression downright cute-

Wait. Did I just call Karen cute? Why? I never thought of her like that before, we've just been friends since we were like five…. But, I do have to admit, she was pretty…What the hell am I saying? She's my friend, nothing more, nothing less. Period.

"Congratulations, Karen!" I walked over to her and she so very unexpectedly ran up and tackled me in a hug. I was surprised, understandably, as I had just been thinking about Karen and I in way I never had before, and I could feel my face heat up again. _Oh, God, don't tell me I'm blushing_, I thought. "Thanks, Jack."

Thankfully, the heat faded away and I looked at her, still embracing me. "For what?"

"If you hadn't told me to not throw the Pokeball right away and to battle Pidgey, it may have flown away. I caught my first Pokemon with your help, Jack!" she squealed.

My face heated up again, and I managed to say, "Uh, you're welcome, I guess."

"Bulba!" Bulbasaur protested, calmly walking up to us.

She finally let me go and stepped back. "Oh, and of course thank you to you, too, Bulbasaur. I couldn't have caught her without your help." Karen smiled. She went to admiring the Pokeball holding her recent capture. "Pidgey, come on out!" she tossed the Pokeball in the air and it opened, and the light spilled out, and Pidgey was left flapping in mid-air as the ball closed and went back to Karen. She caught it and clipped it to her belt. "Hi, Pidgey, I'm Karen, your new Trainer," she said with a smile.

The Pidgey just hovered there, staring at Karen. After a few seconds, it flapped over to her and landed on her shoulder, giving a coo of affection as it caressed Karen's cheek with its own. "Pidgey, stop, that tickles!" Pidgey stopped and looked over at me. "Look, Jack, she already likes me,"

"Yeah, I see that," I said, looking at the little foot-tall bird. The Pokemon cooed before taking off and landing on my shoulder, giving me the same cheek treatment. You know, it did tickle. "Come one, Pidgey, that's enough," I said. Pidgey stopped and I petted it, earning another happy coo from it.

"Oh, she likes you, too!" Karen said, stepping towards us. "That's so cute!"

"Hey, why do keep saying 'she'? How do you know Pidgey's a girl?" I asked. The little Pokemon cocked its head.

Karen frowned. "I, uh, don't know. I just…know."

"Check your Pokedex," I said. "Maybe it'll tell you if it is a girl or not." Pidgey pecked me in the head.

"Hey, what was that for?"

"Prrr," Pidgey huffed, probably miffed that I was questioning its gender.

Karen took out her Pokedex and opened it, pointing at Pidgey. The device whirred and the woman's voice cam out. "Pidgey, the Tiny Bird Pokemon. Pidgey has an extremely sharp sense of direction. It is capable of unerringly returning home to its nest, however far it may be removed from its familiar surroundings."

"Okay, now that that's over with…" Karen pressed a few buttons and said, "Alright, here's some info on Pidgey. It weighs four-and-a-half pounds, is a foot tall, prefers to live in forests, and…," she paused. " Huh, look at that, Pidgey is, in fact, a girl."

"Well, then good girl," I said, petting her again, eliciting another happy coo.

"C'mon, Pidgey, let's get going." Karen offered a shoulder to her new Pokemon, and she happily accepted, jumping from my shoulder to Karen's. She started walking down the road again.

"Aren't you going to put her back into her Pokeball?" I asked.

"I figured she could ride around a bit, you know, get to know us," Karen replied over her shoulder.

"Whatever." I shrugged, following her down the path towards Viridian City.

* * *

We walked along for another fifteen minutes, the calls of the various Pokemon all around us. Up ahead, Karen was playing with Pidgey. She threw a pebble down the road path and Pidgey flew off her shoulder to get it and returned with it in her beak. She landed on Karen's shoulder, dropping the pebble in her Trainer's hand, where Karen threw it again, and Pidgey flew after it again. Playing fetch with a bird, essentially. Weird.

A couple minutes more of walking, and there was a large rustling in a bush off to my right. Karen and I stopped and watched the bush for any other sign of movement. Nothing. As we were about to start walking again, the bush rustled again, even harder then last time.

"Okay, that's weird," I muttered.

"It's a little scary, too," Karen said, moving closer to me, Pidgey giving her undivided attention on the pebble in Karen's right hand.

I admit, I jumped a little when I suddenly saw yellow eyes staring back at us. I stared back, slowly reaching for Charmander's Pokeball. Before I could unclip it from my belt, I felt a thump on my head. Whatever it was that fell on me landed on the bill of my cap and rolled off. I reached up and caught it in mid-air, lifting it up to examine it. An Oran Berry.

The bush rustled it hardest, and the eyes narrowed. Karen and I gulped, and I could see her out of the corner of my eye reaching for Bulbasaur's Pokeball, Pidgey still staring at he pebble. Odd, since I was sure we were about to get attacked any second now. Sure enough, a golden blur shot out of the bush and hit me, knocking me to the ground.

"Jack!" Karen shouted, concerned, and now Pidgey was paying attention to us. Too bad it took me getting attacked to get her attention. I was still able to keep my hold on the Oran Berry when I fell the dirt, kicking some of it up. I looked down at my chest where the attacker had landed and saw that it was a Rattata. A strong one, too.

I also noticed something was off about it. Most Rattata were purple, but this one wasn't. I was a golden color. I instantly knew why this Rattata was this particular color. It was a shiny Rattata, extremely rare. I just found myself a rare Pokemon. On the first day of my journey, no less.

You bet your ass I was going to catch it.

But by the way it was hissing at me, getting captured was the last thing on its mind. It was staring at the berry in my hand. Oh. It must have been looking for lunch, and it must have thought that I just stole its food.

Before I could even think about giving it the berry, it lunged, aiming for my face. Then, before it could sink its teeth in, a cream-and-brown blur shot down, slamming into the Mouse Pokemon. The Rattata fell to the ground and rolled, getting back up and hissing at Pidgey, who was now hovering in the air, staring the Rattata down. The Rattata hissed once more and lunged at Pidgey, jumping surprisingly high in the air.

Pidgey twisted in mid-air, and the Rattata flew past, landing on the ground and spinning to attack Pidgey again. But before it could lunge again, I stepped in between them, holding up the Oran Berry for Rattata to see. It stopped hissing and stared at the berry.

"Jack, what are you doing?" Karen asked, puzzled at my action.

"Just hold on. Don't let Pidgey attack." I slowly made my way forward, not wanting to startle the pissed off Pokemon into attacking. "Is this what you want, Rattata? You hungry?"

The Rattata just stared at me.

When I was close to it, I crouched down and looked it in the eye. "Here you go," I said, extending the berry to it. It stared at me, suspicious. Then it smiled and closed the foot between us, grabbing the berry in its paws. "Good Pokemon," I said, petting the little Pokemon on the head. It smiled and took a bite of the berry, chewed, and swallowed. Then, before I could battle it to catch it, it place the berry in its mouth and took off into the bushes, quickly disappearing.

"No, Rattata, wait!" I said, jumping to my feet. I ran over to the bush and peered behind it. No sign of the extremely rare shiny Rattata. "Damn it, I really wanted to catch it," I muttered, hanging my head.

"That Rattata was golden. Rattata are usually purple," Karen said. "It was shiny, wasn't it?"

"Yeah."

"Those things are extremely rare, aren't they?"

"Yeah."

There was some silence, disturbed only by Pidgey's wings as she landed on Karen's shoulder. "We should get going, Jack."

"Yeah, okay," I agreed, straightening up. We walked on, the loss of the chance to catch a rare shiny Rattata hanging over me like some kind of dark cloud.

* * *

A few more hours of walking, and we were tired. Karen had long since put Pidgey back in her Pokeball. When we left Pallet Town, it had been about eight in the morning. When the shiny Rattata attacked me, it had been about noon, so we had been traveling for four hour. Now, the sun was starting to set, so it was about six in the evening. We had been traveling for ten hours. Our feet were starting to hurt, and we were hungry.

"It's starting to get dark. Okay, Karen, what do you want to do?" I asked her, stopping. "Should we press on to Viridian? Or do you want to set up camp here?"

"Camp," Karen said immediately, taking off her bag, taking out the sleeping bag, and set it on the ground on the side of the path.

"Camp it is, then," I sighed. I took of my own backpack and set it on the ground against a tree. "Alright, Karen, I'll be back. I'm going to go get some firewood. Wanna come?"

Karen sighed, then jumped up. " Okay."

We trekked into the forest in search of firewood. I was able to find some suitable pieces, and picking them up, I heard Karen's voice sound out. "Bulbasaur, Vine Whip!" There was a snapping, a cracking, and a wooden thumping.

"Did she just have Bulbasaur use Vine Whip to chop firewood?" I asked myself. I shrugged. "Whatever works, I guess."

I went back to the make-shift campsite and set my bounty down. I went back and found some large, smooth rocks and brought them back. I placed them in a circle, and seeing that there wasn't enough to make a complete circle, I went to get more and placed them down.

I piled the wood in the center of the circle of rocks as Karen came back, lugging a huge pile on a large leaf, Bulbasaur helping to pull with her vines. "Whoa, that's a lot."

With a grunt, Karen gave one final tug and left the leaf next to the firewood I had set down. "Yep. Bulbasaur did a good job. Good girl," she said, petting Bulbasaur.

I unclipped the lone Pokeball at from my belt and pressed the button, expanding it, then again to open it. The light spilled out and took the form of my Charmander. He stretched and said, "Charmander!"

"Charmander, could you light the wood with Ember?" I asked him after putting some more on.

"Chah!" he nodded, and opened his mouth, little balls of fire hitting the wood, almost immediately igniting it.

"Thanks, Charmander," I thanked him, sitting down on my sleeping bag I had set up, taking off my cap. Charmander came over and climbed into my lap, curling up there and closing his eyes. I petted him as he fell asleep, watching as the fire crackled and popped, its fiery tendrils reaching into the air like hands. Karen sat across next to me on her own sleeping, taking her hat off as well, her Bulbasaur mimicking Charmander and curling up in her lap. We sat in silence, staring at the fire.

"Isn't this nice, Jack? Out on this journey with our Pokemon?"

"Yeah, it is nice." I looked into the sky, at the sunset painting the sky indigo blue, pink, and orange. "And the sunset is nice, too."

Karen looked up, too. "It is." She smiled and looked back at me. "So what are we going to do when we get to Viridian?"

"I don't know," I responded honestly. "I heard that there was a Gym there, so we could challenge the leader there for my first Gym badge."

"Like Gary said he would?"

"Exactly,"

We were silent for a while longer, looking inside the fire, as our Pokemon slept in our laps. Being a Fire-type, Charmander was very warm, and it felt nice in the coming chill of the night. But, since Bulbasaur was a Grass-type, she didn't give off as much warmth as Charmander, so Karen ended up scooting closer to me and the crackling fire. A little bit later, a few seconds, she leaned her head on my shoulder, and I could feel myself heat up, much more than the heat from the fire and Charmander should have given off.

She must have felt me tense up, because she looked up and asked, "This doesn't bother you, does it?"

I shook my head. "Not at all."

She nodded and placed her head back on my shoulder. We sat there, Karen's head resting on my shoulder as the sky continued to darken. A few more minutes of silence, in which the only sounds heard were the soft snoring of our starters. Then the quiet was broken by a loud, guttural rumbling. Karen jumped. "What the hell was that?" She looked at me, and I grinned sheepishly.

"I, uh, I'm kinda hungry," I said. The rumbling from the pit of my stomach came again, louder this time, as if saying that I wasn't just hungry. "Okay, I'm starving. I haven't eaten since this morning, before I got Charmander." At mention of his name, Charmander opened an eye.

Now it was Karen's stomach's turn to growl. She laughed, a slight blush appearing on her face. "I guess I'm hungry, too."

"Tell you what," I said, standing and placing my cap back on my head. "I'll go find some berries or something, and bring them back and we can eat them."

"I don't want to send you out alone," she said.

"No, it's okay, Charmander can come with me." Charmander was fully awake now, and he nodded.

"Charmander, Chah," he said, raising an arm, reassuring Karen.

"Well, okay," she gave in.

"Sit tight, I'll be back." I strode off into the forest, Charmander at my heels.

We walked on, the little fire on my starter's tail lighting the way. "Okay, Charmander, think you could sniff around and see if there are any berries around here?" I asked, crouching to meet him at eye level. The little Fire-type nodded, lifting his snout into the air, taking big sniffs, eyes closed to concentrate. A few seconds of sniffing, and he opened his eyes, shaking his head. "Char."

"It's okay, let's just keep looking." I straightened up and went searching for more berries, occasionally asking Charmander to sniff for any. After several tries at this, the night having already descended on us without our knowing, like some kind of stealthy ninja, with the occasional cloud blocking the moon from view, he finally picked up a scent. "Chah,chah!" he said, pointing into the trees. I followed him as he lead me into a clearing, where Charmander and I stared in amazement. Smack dab in the center of the clearing was a tree, bigger then the others. But its size wasn't what caught our attention. All over the branched of the trees, leaving practically no inch uncovered, were a lot of berries. And I do mean _a lot_. There was a huge variety of berries, ranging from Pecha, Chesto, Cheri, and Oran, even a bunch of Sitrus Berries, which were very uncommon in the wild.

"Jackpot," I said, looking at Charmander, whose stomach began growling, too. I laughed. "Come one, Charmander, let's fill out stomachs up."

"Charmander!" he said, excited at the prospect of food, following as I stepped up to the tree. I stopped right under it, and reached up to pluck a Pecha Berry from a lower branch. But before I could actually take a hold of it, the branches higher up rustled.

"Oh, no, not another Rattata," I muttered, taking a step back. When I put some distance between me and the tree, the rustling stopped, almost as if it had rustled only to tell me to keep away. I suddenly had the feeling that this tree had been claimed by something, and that that something was watching us. I carefully watched the tree for any more movement, then swallowed, then stepped closer again. I once more reached up to pluck a berry, but the rustling started up again. Holding my hand up, in position to take a berry, I contemplated whether I should do it, risking pissing off the denizen of the tree. I looked behind me at Charmander, who was staring intently at the tree. I relaxed a little at the sight. I knew that if I was attacked, Charmander would be there to protect me.

Taking a deep breath, I muttered, "Here goes," and plucked the berry. The rustling in the tree intensified. I picked another berry, and another, and another, and the rustling increased at each berry I picked until the tree was practically shaking. I picked another berry, and that was it. A dark shape flew out of the tree, then another, then another, then another, and yet another. Soon, there was a platoon of flapping shapes in the air, looking down at me. At first I thought they were Pidgey, but as a cloud that had been obscuring the moon moved, the soft white light from moon shone down, revealing the identities of the flying creatures. As soon as I got a good look at them, I saw that they weren't Pidgey, and I also knew I was screwed.

Spearow. And lots of them, about a two dozen. The bird Pokemon had a reputation that preceded them. They were known for being aggressive, much more so then the other bird Pokemon we had encountered, Pidgey. Charmander stepped in front of me, poised to attack. I was a little surprised that Charmander would already put himself on the line to protect me, even though we had just met that morning.

Without warning, the small flock of Spearow dove, shrieking, at us. Charmander and I stood our ground. "Charmander, Ember!" Charmander shot out a multitude of little fireballs at the incoming birds. Some fell from the attack, hitting the ground and rolling. Some of the others that were hit kept coming at us, screeching all the way. "Move, Charmander!" I dived to the left, and Charmander jumped to the right, shooting another Ember at the Spearow as they flew past, knocking a few of them to the ground. I jumped back up as the bird Pokemon came around for another strike. I counted some thirteen of them were left still flying.

"Speeeeearoooooow!" the remaining Pokemon screeched as they dove again. I called for Charmander to use Ember again. He shot out more fireballs, the attack like anti-air missiles, hitting some of the Spearow, knocking them out of the sky. Some of the Spearow were able to avoid the fireballs and kept coming for us. Before I could have Charmander use Ember again, the Spearow were upon us, pecking at us, pretty painfully, I may add. I shouted out in pain as my arms, that I had brought up to defend my face, took the sharp beaks of the birds, Charmander suffering the same.

"Ow! You damn Spearow!" I shouted, sweeping my arm out, hitting some of the Pokemon, knocking them away. I turned my attention to Charmander, who used a Tail Whip to push the tree Spearow attacking him away. "Ember!"

Fireballs shot from his mouth and hit the birds dead on, knocking them to the ground like the Spearow before them. I whirled as another Spearow screeched behind me. The remaining five Spearow dove, straight for meat top speed. Before I could think about bringing up arms to cover my face, they slammed into me, knocking me to the ground. My breath left me at impact with the grass, and I quickly covered my head as the Spearow pecked at me. "Charmander!" I called for my Pokemon.

There was some pinpoints of light and the pecking stopped. I slowly uncovered my face and looked around. The five Spearow that knocked me down were lying around me, twitching, having been burned by Charmander's Ember. I looked at my Pokemon. He walked over to me and hopped on my lap, examining me for any wounds. "No, I'm okay, Charmander. Just a little bruised, is all."

He nodded, looking relieved. "Chah."

"Well, I guess now we can get some of those berries now, huh?" I said.

My Pokemon nodded, smiling.

I went up to the tree and started picking berries. Stopped when my arms were full of them. I looked at Charmander and his arms were full of berries, too. I chuckled, then went back the way we came, saying, "Come on, Charmander."

Charmander led the way with the light of the fire on his tail. A few minutes of navigating through the trees and bushes and we eventually arrived back at the campsite. Karen had been dozing lightly, Bulbasaur at her side, sleeping, and she sat up when we came back.

"Hey, Jack, you get some berries?" Karen asked sleepily, rubbing her eyes.

"You could say that," I said, setting the berries down.

"Whoa, that's a lot of berries,"

"Yeah, Charmander and I had to fight off a flock of Spearow for them, but it wasn't a big deal," I told her, Charmander adding his berries to the pile and coming to stand next to me.

"Spearow? I heard they're supposed to be very aggressive," Karen said, reaching for a Pecha Berry.

"Oh, trust me, they were," I responded, grabbing my own Pecha Berry and biting into it. "I have a feeling I'll have a bunch of bruises tomorrow."

By now, Bulbasaur had woken up and walked over to us, and now she and Charmander were taking their share of berries. "I bet Pidgey is hungry, too." Karen reached for Pidgey's Pokeball, sending her out in a flash of light.

"Prrr," Pidgey cooed.

"You hungry, Pidgey? Get some berries,"

Pidgey flew down and hopped over to the pile and picked an Oran Berry. She hopped away with it in her beak and started pecking at it, taking off little bits and throwing her head back, swallowing them. We ate in silence, the occasional Pokemon cry ringing out. By the time we had our fill, most of the pile was gone.

"I'm tired. I'm going to bed," Karen said after a big yawn. She took off her shoes and recalled Pidgey into her Pokeball. She crawled into her sleeping bag after slipping on some sweat pants over her skirt and was almost immediately snoring away, albeit softly, Bulbasaur asleep next to her.

"Goodnight, Karen." I kicked off my shoes and crawled into my own sleeping bag, Charmander lying down next to me. "Goodnight Charmander."

"Char…" Charmander said, falling asleep.

I lay on my back, staring up at the star-studded sky. I was surprised at how much brighter they were outside of town, even though they were bright enough over Pallet. I briefly wondered if Gary had already reached Viridian, and if he had challenged the Gym there. My eyes were starting to get heavy. I didn't fight it as the sweet darkness of sleep overcame me.

* * *

I woke to the sound of rustling. _Oh, not again_, I thought. Charmander was already standing up, glaring into the shadows cast by the trees along with Bulbasaur, Karen standing over them. I stood up and walked over. "What's going on?"

Karen took a while to respond. "I don't know. Bulbasaur and Charmander were already up when I came over. Something's coming."

I looked into the multitude of trees, looking for anything. I could see nothing. As I was going to tell Karen that there was nothing there, I saw it. A shape in the shadows, some distance away, was coming closer. I stood behind Charmander, ready to call an attack of we needed to. The figure drew closer, and the Pokemon in front us tensed up, ready to take an order. And the figure kept coming closer. The shadows were to dark to make out anything certain, but I could tell that, whatever it was, it was small. But, as I had learned today, size really didn't matter. The figure came even closer, and I could see a faint golden coloring on it. _Could it be?_, the thought flashed through my head. Charmander and Bulbasaur growled as it came even closer.

Finally, the figure came forth from the shadows and into the moonlight, revealing what it was.

The shiny Rattata from earlier today.

"What the hell?" Karen and I said simultaneously. We shared a glance, then looked back at the Rattata. It had calmly walked up and sat at my feet, looking up at me, smiling, its large teeth glinting in the moonlight.

I kneeled on one knee and petted the little Pokemon. "Whatcha doing here, little guy?"

"Rattata," it said simply. It crawled up my arm and jumped on my shoulder. "Rattata!"

I stood and looked at the Mouse Pokemon perched on my shoulder "What are you doing there?"

"Rattata!" it exclaimed. It batted at my hat with a paw, earning a "Aw, that's so cute!" from Karen. The Pokemon looked over at her and smiled, its huge front teeth prominent. An idea suddenly came to me. There could be a few reasons as to why this shiny Rattata was here. It could be hungry, coming to look for food. But there were quite a few of the berries I found left, and it hadn't gone over to them. If it really was hungry, then it would have gone straight for the berries. No, it was here for another reason altogether.

"Rattata."

The golden Mouse Pokemon looked at me.

"Do you want to come with me?"

Its face lit up, and it jumped down to the grass and turned around, nodding vigorously. "Okay, then." I took an empty Pokeball from my backpack and enlarged it at the press of the button. "You sure about it, Rattata?"

It nodded again, excited.

"Okay." I tossed the Pokeball at Rattata, and it hit the Mouse Pokemon in the head and opened, pulling the Pokemon inside. The Pokeball shook only three times before stopping and the red light on the button disappeared.

I stared at the Pokeball. I knew it would happen someday, but when I actually caught a Pokemon, it was completely different then what I had thought it would be. I'm not the kind to jump for joy, but I was shaking a little from the sheer excitement that came with catching my first Pokemon as I walked over and picked up the ball. I held it up, looking at it as if I could see right through it to see the Pokemon held inside.

"Karen," I said, turning around slowly. I'm also not the kind to be rendered speechless when something like this happened. "I caught a Pokemon. I caught a _shiny _Rattata. I just caught an extremely rare Pokemon."

"Congratulations, Jack!" Karen said, walking over, followed by Bulbasaur and Charmander.

"Thanks," I said. I sighed and put Rattata's Pokeball away in my backpack. "We should get some sleep." I crawled back into my sleeping bag, Karen into hers, our Pokemon returning to their positions next to us before Rattata woke us up.

"I'll try," Karen said. "But I'm too excited to sleep. I mean, you just caught a _shiny_ Pokemon! And on the first day of your journey! It's unbelievable!'

But, despite what she said, she was asleep within two minutes. It took me much longer to fall asleep, but I was finally able to. I slept soundly that night under the twinkling stars, knowing that we would arrive in Viridian tomorrow, challenging the Gym Leader there, confident that I would earn my first badge.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Well, there's Chapter 2. Hope you like it.

Oh, and did anyone catch that song name reference? Inside the Fire is a song by my favorite band, Disturbed. But I digress.

I'll get Chapter 3 up as soon as I'm done with it. Be on alert for it, I should finish it in less than a week.


	3. Viridian City

Chapter 3: Viridian City

"Hey, sleepy-head, wake up." I cracked open an eye. Karen stood above me, the early morning sun shining from behind her head, making it seem as if she had a halo.

"Uh, wha?" was my intelligent response.

She laughed. "Come one, Jack, get up, we should get on going to Viridian."

I sat up in my sleeping bag. "Alright, alright, I'm up." I saw that Charmander was already awake, so I figured we might as well go. I stood and slipped my shoes on before rolling up the sleeping bag and placing it back in my backpack. I placed my hat on my head and asked her, "Do you want to have breakfast first?"

"No, actually. We're not to far from Viridian, we should get there soon," she replied after checking her town map.

"And what about the wood?" I gestured at the huge pile of wood stacked by our campsite.

She shrugged."Let's just leave it here. Someone else may find it and use it."

"Whatever. Charmander, return." I returned my starter back into his Pokeball and clipped it to my belt. We then set off down the road to Viridian City.

We stopped about half an hour later when we heard a gruff voice talking and barking orders. Karen and I stopped to hear what they were saying. We couldn't make out any words, however, so we decided to slink closer to the edge of the path and into the bushes. Under the cover of the bushes, we gazed out at a clearing and spotted the source of the voices: three men, who seemed to be searching the clearing for something. The three were dressed oddly. All wore black pants and shirts, white gloves and boots, and if there choice of clothing wasn't weird enough, they all had a bright red R on the front of their shirts.

"What the hell?" I muttered.

"Sir, we searched this clearing thoroughly," one of them said to another, probably their boss, "but if Mew was here, it's long gone now."

"Dammit, it's always one step ahead of us," the boos said.

"What's a mew?" Karen whispered from next to me.

"I don't know," I said.

"Okay, let's head back to HQ," the boss said.

"Yes, sir," the other two said simultaneously.

They pulled a Pokeball from each of their belts and sent out the Pokemon within. From the grunt's Pokeballs came two Pokemon that were about my height, had dark brown feathers, a few tan ones, anm area of tan feathers on the back of its wings, a red crest, and a long, sharp beak. The boss's Pokemon was tan over most of it's body, with a small beak, compared to the other two Pokemon, an area of black markings around its eyes, and the trade mark red-and-orange crest running down its back, gently flapping in the breeze. The three climbed onto the backs of their respective Pokemon, and the Fearow and Pidgeot flew off towards the east. Karen and I stood when they were just specks in the sky, and shared a look.

"What the hell was that?" she asked.

"Who knows. We should just ignore them, they don't seem like good guys." I turned and headed back to the road.

"They were talking about a mew. What could it be?" Karen said, following me.

" A Pokemon, maybe? I don't know. Let's just forget them and keep going."

"Yeah, okay."

An hour later, the encounter with the three strange men already forgotten, we crested the top of a hill and looked upon the city of Viridian.

"Wow," Karen breathed. "It's beautiful from up here."

"Yeah, I guess it is." I spotted a large, rectangular building with a brown roof in the northern area of town, the Gym. South of that were the tell-tale red and blue roofs of the Pokemon Center and the Poke Mart. To the west was a small lake or a large pond, where people were milling around, some of them fishing. A little ways northwest of the pond was a path that lead towards Route 22. " Come on, Karen, let's get to the Pokemon Center. I'm starving."

We traveled down the hill, the base of which met with a road that lead into the city. I had seen the Center, so I was confident that I could find it easily. As it turns out, that wasn't the case. A minute spent wandering the streets, and we were lost.

" Jack, we're lost, aren't we?"

"Frankly? Yes, yes we are."

We sighed in unison. I looked up and spotted a man walking in our direction, a Pikachu on his shoulder.

"I'm going to ask for directions," Karen said, stepping forward to speak to the man. "Excuse me, sir, but would you happen to know where the Pokemon Center is?"

"My, you're very polite, so much more than that other child," he said.

An impolite child? Maybe it was Gary. "Hey, was he wearing a black collared shirt and purple jeans?" I asked.

"Yes, actually, he was. He had a Squirtle with him that seemed to just adore him. He was very rude. He insulted my Pikachu, saying that it was weak-looking, that even his Squirtle could beat him."

"Yep, that's him," I muttered. "Do you know where he went?"

"After having insulted us, he went into the Pokemon Center."

"Speaking of which," Karen said, "Where is the Center?"

The man turned and pointed down the street. "It's around the corner, to the left, and two blocks from there."

"Thank you," Karen said.

I simply nodded my thanks at the man and followed Karen. A few minutes later, we entered through the automatic doors of the Center and into the lobby.

"That man's Pikachu was so cute, dontcha think, Jack?" Karen asked as we walked up to the counter.

"Yeah, I guess it was."

"I take you two are beginning Trainers?" the Nurse Joy asked from behind the counter.

I nodded and Karen said, "Yep. We'd like one room, please."

Nurse Joy looked at the two of us. "Young lady, I don't think that would be very...appropriate."

Karen cocked her head. "Why not?"

"Because..."

We stared at Nurse Joy.

"Never mind," she said, shaking her head. "I guess I could give you a room...together."

"That's what I asked for," Karen said.

"May I see your Pokedexes?"

We took out our Pokedexes and handed them to the Nurse. She took them and inserted mine into a slot on her computer. My picture appeared on the screen, along with some information about me and a picture of Charmander. A mechanical woman's voice came forth from the computer and said, "Jack Grant, beginning Trainer. Current Pokemon: Charmander, Rattata."

Nurse Joy took it out after a few more seconds and inserted Karen's, and her picture, information, and current Pokemon appeared on-screen, The voice came from the computer again. "Karen Hart, beginning Trainer. Current Pokemon: Bulbasur, Pidgey."

The Nurse took it out and handed them back to us. "Okay, your rooms are ready. You're in room 7. Just put your Pokedex in front of the panel by the door and it'll open."

We took our Pokedexes back and put them back into our bags.

"Thank you, Nurse Joy," Karen said.

I nodded at the Nurse, like I did with the man with the Pikachu, and we headed towards our room. Before we could leave the lobby, however, we stopped when someone called out, "Hey, kiddies, you just got here, eh?"

Karen growled and spun around. "Shut the hell up, Gary!"

"Whoa, temper, temper." Gary smirked. "Hey, Jack, how's your puny Charmander? Have you even caught any other Pokemon yet?'

"Yes, a Rattata. Have you?" As usual, I kept a stony face and calm composure when dealing with Gary and his asshole-ness.

"As a matter of fact, I did," he said smugly.

"Is it a Pidgey?"

His smirk fell, and I couldn't help a small smile at seeing that. "How the hell'd you know?'

"'Cause I caught one, too," Karen said

Gary huffed and crossed his arms. "Whatever." He turned to leave when I stopped him.

"I have something for you, Gary."

"What is it?" He tapped his foot impatiently.

I pulled the cloth-wrapped town map out of my back pack and and handed it to him. "Here."

He took it, unwrapped it, and stopped. "Holy crap. A town map. Where the hell'd you get this? I hear it's supposed to be expensive."

"Your sister gave it to me to give to you. Surprisingly, she cares about you, given how much of an asshole you are. She didn't want you getting lost." I decided not to tell him that Karen and I also got town maps, just to have that much over him.

"Cool. Thanks, Jack, I guess."

I said nothing as he walked away. He stopped and said over his shoulder, "Oh, and the Gym's closed, by the way. Probably won't open for a while." Then he exited the Center.

"Damn, I was hoping to challenge the Gym Leader."

"Yeah, me, too. So, what should we do now?" Karen asked.

"Let's leave our stuff in our room and get breakfast, 'cause I'm starving."

We exited the lobby and walked down a hallway, passing by doors that lead to other rooms before stopping in front of a room with a bronze 7 mounted on the door.

"Here we are." I pulled out my Pokedex and held it up in front the six inch by six inch panel next to the door, like Nurse Joy told us to. There was a beep and the red light at the top of the panel went from red to green. I opened the door and stepped inside, Karen following. The room was pretty big, and there were two beds, one on each side of the room. The walls and ceiling were clean, and the carpet a dark blue. At the opposite side of the room, there was a window that looked out at the streets, the bustling people, the Pokemon walking or flying outside. A few feet from the window was a open door that lead into the bathroom.

We each walked over to a bed and placed our bags on them. Karen plopped down onto her bed and let out a sigh. "This bed is _so _soft."

I sat down on the edge of my bed and nodded. "Yeah, it really is." Resisting the temptation to lay down and take a nap, I stood and plucked Charmander's Pokeball from my belt. "Come on out, Charmander."

The Pokeball popped open and my Pokemon materialized at my feet. He looked up at me and let out a happy, "Chah!"

"Hey, you hungry?"

He nodded.

"Okay, let's go eat. Karen, you-" I stopped when I saw that she was already fast asleep. I smiled, noticing just how cute she looked, eyes closed, long, brown hair framing her face, snoring softly-

"Ah, dammit! Stop that, Jack! She's your best friend! Friends don't think like that about their best friends!" I quietly berated myself.

Wait.

Did I just say Karen was my best friend? Well, I guess she was. We've been friends since we were little, I've always been able to talk to her about, well, anything. Yeah, Karen is my best friend. I smiled at that

"You're my best friend," I whispered. Signaling Charmander to be quiet, we left and I closed the door softly. We walked down the hall and to the cafeteria, where I walked up to the counter and asked the waitress for some eggs, bacon, and a glass of orange juice and Pokemon food for Charmander. A few minutes later, the waitress brought my food on a tray, along with Charmander's in a bowl, and I took them and sat down at a nearby booth.

I placed Charmander's food on the table, and he jumped up and immediately started to wolf it down. "Calm down, Charmander, you'll choke."

He looked up at me and said, "Charmander, char," before going back to eating, albeit at a slower pace.

I was almost finished with my breakfast when someone suddenly sat down in the seat opposite me.

I looked up at the girl, who seemed to be about my age, maybe a little older. She wore a striped black and white long-sleeved top, light blue jeans, and bright green sneakers. Her black hair came down to her shoulders, and it seemed to sparkle in the morning sunlight. And she had the brightest shade of green eyes I had ever seen. She was pretty."Can I help you?"

She smiled and stuck out her hand. "Hi, I'm Miranda. Nice to meet you."

I eyed it for a moment, then slowly reached out and shook her hand. "Jack."

Miranda looked at Charmander, who had by now finished his food. "Is this Charmander yours?"

"Just got him yesterday," I responded with a nod.

"Yesterday? Are you a beginning Trainer?"

I nodded.

There was a moment of silence between us , during which all that was heard was the din of all of the other occupants of the cafeteria, before she spoke. "You're not very talkative, are you?"

"Only with people I don't know."

"Oh. I see."

Another moment of silence in which I finished my food. "So, is there any particular reason you came to talk to me?"

"What? I'm just being sociable. You know, you could learn a few things from me."

"I get that a lot." I noticed a movement by the entrance to the cafeteria and saw Karen walking in. She cast about, and, spotting me, headed over to the booth I was currently sharing with Miranda.

"Jack, why'd you let me go back to sleep?"

"Well, by the time I got up to leave, I saw you were already out cold, so I thought I'd-"

"Who's this?" she interrupted.

Miranda stood up and offered Karen her hand. "Hi, I'm Miranda."

Karen shook it. "Good to meet you, Miranda. I'm Karen. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go get some food." She went up to the counter and ordered her breakfast.

Miranda sat back down and smiled at me. I gave her a half-smile and a small nod in response before scooting over to make room for Karen to sit. Shortly afterward, the waitress came with Karen's food and Miranda and I asked for some more eggs and bacon. The waitress left and returned with our orders. From there, the three of us ate our meals, sharing stories about ourselves and some of our Pokemon. Seemed like I made a new friend.

"Okay, the Gym's gonna be closed for a while, so that means we'll have to challenge it some other time. So where should we go now?" Karen and I were back in our room, huddled around my town map, studying it for our next probable destination.

"Hey, why don't we go over here?" Karen pointed to an area to the west of Viridian, labeled on the map as Route 22.

"Route 22? Why go there?"

"Why _not_ go there?"

A pause in which we shared a smile, before I responded. "You make a very valid argument, Miss Hart. Shall we go to Route 22 now? Or would you rather wait till later?"

"I'd rather go now, if it's no trouble, Mr. Grant."

"No problem at all."

"Then it is settled. On to Route 22!"

We laughed at our silliness before slinging on our packs and placing our hats on our heads and heading out. We exited the Pokemon Center and went west, towards Route 22. Fortunately

Karen, Miranda, and I each had shared stories about ourselves, and mine were by far the most interesting. Karen and Miranda had similar lives growing up, they had a run-of-the-mill home life and parents, but I could see that Miranda was clearly impressed when I told her about my parent's having been top trainers in their day, and that my dad was now a Gym Leader in another region. She pestered me with questions about my father and mother, what kind of Pokemon they used, which Pokemon they picked as their starters, whether or not they specialized in one type (I confirmed that my father now uses Normal-types, but didn't when he first started out as a Trainer), how long it took them to gather all of their Gym Badges, how far they got in the Pokemon League. She then asked a weird question- whether or not I had inherited their battle prowess. I had asked her what she meant about that, but she just shrugged it off as just getting caught up in the moment.

The beginning of Route 22 wasn't too far away from the Pokemon Center, so we got there about ten minutes afterwards. I was lost in thought, wondering where that weird question Miranda asked came from, and I hadn't noticed we had gotten there until Karen stopped me.

"Hey, Jack, what's up?"

"Oh, no, it's nothing. Just thinking about that weird question that Miranda had asked today."

"The one about you inheriting your parent's battle skill?"

We stood there, pondering it, from some time.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's keep going."

Only five minute after officially entering Route 22 we saw a person walking in our direction. Once he got closer, I was able to recognize him. "Gary,what are are you doing here?"

"Well, if it isn't the kiddies again. What are you doing here?" He smirked.

"Dammit, Gary, I told you to stop calling me that, you son of a b-"

"Karen!"

She stopped and looked guiltily at me. "Sorry 'bout that, Jack."

"To answer your question, Gary, we just wanted to travel along this Rout, see what's here."

"Well, the only thing one this boring Route is the Indigo Plateau Gates. But I wouldn't bother. I tried going in there, but the guard said I couldn't pass without Pewter City's Gym Badge."

"Well, that's a bummer," Karen said. "So what should we do know?"

" I guess we'll just have to go back to Viridian."

She groaned. "But we've already come all this way!"

"It's only been five minutes."

"Oh. Right."

We turned to go back when Gary stopped us. "Hey, Jack, you up for a battle?"

I turned to look at him and cocked an eyebrow. "A battle? Now?"

"Yeah. Why not?"

I thought it over for a bit, then shrugged. "Alright."

After some searching, we found a clearing suitable for a battle. Gary and I took positions on opposite ends of the clearing, and Karen sat on a large rock off to the side.

"Ready to get your ass kicked, Jack?"

"We'll see about that."

He smirked and pulled a Pokeball from his belt. "Go, Pidgey!" He tossed it into the air and it popped open, his Pidgey taking form hovering in front of him. Gary caught the Pokeball and re-clipped

back onto his belt.

I plucked my own Pokeball from my belt, and enlarged it. "Let's see what you can do." I tossed the Ball. "Rattata!"

When Rattata materialized at my feet, he seemed to give off a sparkle, but I thought nothing of it, thinking it was just the sun glinting off of his golden fur. Gary froze and his jaw fell open, and even his Pidgey seemed surprised, and Karen smirked.

"Holy crap! I-i-is that a _shiny_ Rattat?"

"Yep, sure is." I couldn't help but smile. "I caught an incredibly rare shiny Rattata, and on the first say of my journey, no less."

Gary stood there, gawking, for another ten seconds, before shaking his head slowly. "Lucky son of a..."

"Are we battling or not?"

"Of course we are! Pidgey, use Gust!" Pidgey started flapping his wings and sent gusts of air at Rattata.

"Quick Attack! Circle around!" Even as I gave my own command, I could hear Gary mumbling to himself from his side, something about how losers get all the luck.

Rattata shot off in a golden blur, dashing around to get behind Pidgey. "Now! Tackle!"

Without stopping, Rattata leapt and slammed into the little bird Pokemon, who gave off a squawk of surprised and pain, and they fell to the ground. Rattata jumped up and put some distance itself and it's opponent.

"Wow, that thing I fast," Gary said, eying my Pokemon jealously. I felt a bit of pride well up in my chest at Gary's compliment, and at Karen's cheering. "Alright, Pidgey, get up and use Tackle!"

Pidgey jumped up and charged at Rattata, but Rattata was too quick. It deftly jumped to the side and Tackled it at my command, sending the Flying-type sprawling on the ground.

"Damn it, Pidgey's at a disadvantage on the ground!" Gary exclaimed. "Pidgey, get off the ground!"

Obeying the command, Pidgey stood and took off into the air, where it hovered out of Rattata's reach, awaiting another command from it's Trainer. "Gust!" Once again, the little bird Pokemon flapped it's wings vigorously, sending strong gusts of wind at my Pokemon.

"Rattata, hunker down, try not to be blown away!"

Rattata lowered his body and successfully kept from being blown away. Pidgey stopped it's attack and Gary gave it another command. "Tackle!" Pidgey folded it's wings and dove, aiming to hit Rattata before he could move, but I knew my little Mouse Pokemon was faster.

"Quick Attack into a Tackle!" I cried.

Rattata zoomed to the right and Pidgey flew past where he had been standing a second ago. Rattata , without losing speed, spun and slammed into Pidgey, sending it falling to the ground again. But before I could tell Rattata to Tackle it again, Pidgey jumped back up and flapped into the air, slowly gaining altitude.

"Okay, Pidgey, once more! Tackle!"

Pidgey dove again, and I decided to end it there. "Rattata, use Hyper Fang!"

"Hyper Fang?" Gary cried.

As Pidgey plummeted, Rattata dashed forward and leaped. The two Pokemon approached each other in mid-air, and when they collided, Rattata's open mouth clamped down with huge force onto Pidgey as it hit him with the Tackle. But Rattata'sHyper Fang did a lot more damage than Pidgey's Tackle, so, when they both fell back to earth, Pidgey was unconscious, and my Rattata stood victorious.

"Yeah, good job, Jack!" Karen cheered from the sidelines. She had brought out her Bulbasaur out some time before, and she, too, was cheering.

"Ah, dammit! You got lucky, Jack." Gary recalled his injure Pidgey and plucked another Pokeball from his belt. "Go, Squirtle!"

The Pokeball popped open and out came Squirtle with a cry of, "Squirtle!"

"Alright, Squirtle, let's start off with Water Gun!"

"Quick Attack!"

Squirtle shot a jet of water out of it's mouth at Rattata, and Rattata dashed away before the attack could hit. Rattata zoomed at Squirtle and slammed into it and ran off before Squirtle could get in a counter-attack.

"Damn, it's too fast!" Gary seemed a little overwhelmed now.

I smiled. "Rattata, get in close with Quick Attack and use Hyper Fang!"

Rattata dashed away again, but then my smile faded as a smirk came across Gary's face. It looked like he had come up with a plan. "Withdraw!"

_Oh, crap!_ Before I could tell Rattata to stop, he had already reached Squirtle, and bit down with Hyper Fang just as the Tiny Turtle Pokemon withdrew it's head, arms, legs, and tail into it's hard shell. Rattata recoiled and grabbed at his mouth with his front paws, and Gary took advantage of that opening. "Water Gun!"

"Quick Attack!"

Squirtle popped it's head out from the confines of it's shell and shot water at Rattata. Fortunately, Rattata was able to shake off the pain from the failed Hyper Fang and dashed away just in time, the Water-type attack missing by inches. Squirtle quickly drew it's head back into it's shell before Rattata could collide with his attack, rendering Quick Attack useless against its hard shell.

"Damn, none of your attacks will affect it when it's like that, get back here, Rattata."

Rattata ran back to my end of the field and turned to glare at the opposing Water-type.

"Alright, Squirtle, use Rapid Spin!"

Squirtle started to spin, slowly at first, then picking up speed, to the point where it was floating a few inches off the ground. "Now, go, Water Gun!"

Squirtle shot forward, still in it's shell, water spewing out of the leg, arm, and head openings in it's shell, heading straight for us.

"Oh, damn!" I ducked as Squirtle shot over my head. It came back around, aiming for Rattata. "Rattata, run! Don't let it hit you!'

Rattata took off, Squirtle hot on it's heels. But even with Rattata's speed, I could see that Squirtle was gaining fast. _Crap, what do I do?_ Watching my Rattata running from the flying shell that was Squirtle, and idea popped into my head. If it worked, Rattata would be fine. If I misjudged the timing, then Rattata would be hit full force by the Water-type. I let Squirtle get closer to my Pokemon, then shouted, "Now! Jump, Rattata!"

Rattata jumped, twisted in mid-air, and kicked off Squirtle, sending the Pokemon crashing to the ground. Squirtle rolled a few times, now outside of it's shell, before stopping, out cold.

"Ah, damn it!" Gary shouted in frustration. He recalled his starter to it's Pokeball, saying, "Both of my Pokemon, defeated by a Rattata." He sighed before lifting the ball to his face, saying something I couldn't hear from my end of the field.

"Yay, you won, Jack!" Karen ran over to me and tackled me in a hug, her Bulbasaur coming over to congratulate Rattata. "That was a great battle!"

"Uh, thanks, Karen." I hugged her back.

She pulled away as Gary came over to us. "I can't believe _both _of my Pokemon were defeated. By a Rattata."

I stooped over to let Rattata scamper onto my shoulder. He was dirty and breathing heavily, but other wise fine. "This little guy sure is strong." Rattat smiled big, his two incisors glinting in the sunlight.

"Don't get so used to winning, Jack," Gary snorted. "Next time, I _will_ beat you. Later, losers!"

Gary strolled off in the direction of Viridian City, and Karen huffed. "He is such an asshole. He got his ass kicked, and he still can't congratulate you."

"Ah, it's okay, Karen," I sighed. "At least I got the satisfaction of knowing that I beat his two Pokemon with just my Rattata." I smiled and scratched Rattata under the chin, who purred in pleasure. "Alright, we oughta head back."

We recalled our Pokemon to their respective Pokeballs and walked down the path back to the civilization.

We were just a few minutes from arriving in the city when Karen and I saw a commotion up ahead.

We got closer to see what was going on, and Karen gasped and I bristled at the sight. Two guys, dressed exactly like the three we saw before arriving in Viridian City, were harassing Gary. One of them had thrown him to the ground and pinned his arms behind his back, and the other was standing over him, holding a Pokeball, with some small device in hand.

I decided to take matters into my own hands. "Stay here, Karen."

"Jack, what are you doing?"

I ran forward as the one holding the device turned. Once I got close enough, I kicked him in the knee, causing him to fall to one knee, then delivered a quick punch to his face. He fell to the ground as his partner stood up and rushed me. He punched at me, and ducked under his fist before giving him a quick jab in the ribs and a kick in the chest he staggered back and tripped over Gary, who was starting to get up. I whirled as the first one got back to his feet.

"Stupid kid. What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Isn't it obvious? Preventing you from stealing his Pokemon!"

He wiped some blood from the corner of his mouth with the back of his gloved hand. "You got guts, kid, I'll give you that, but that won't be enough!" He swung and I jumped back and I grabbed his arm and pulled him closer, delivering a vicious elbow at his face. Blood spurted from his nose and he fell to the ground, grabbing his face.

"Jack, behind you!" Karen's voice rang out.

I whirled in time to see the other man in black rush me swing like before. I leaned back and his fist went right over my face. He punched with his other fist and I blocked it before grabbing it, bringing him in and giving a vicious knee to his stomach, the to his groin. He fell like his partner before him, clutching at his groin. There was the popping sound of a Pokeball opening, and I turned to the first man holding a Pokeball, a male Nidoran at his feet.

"Tackle that brat!" he ordered.

The Nidoran rushed forward and leaped, hitting me square in the chest, knocking me to the ground, and Karen shouted, "Jack!". The Pokemon landed on my chest as his Trainer gave another command. "Poison Sting!" The little purple Pokemon's horn glowed purple and he reared up. I didn't give him the chance to strike, though. I shoved him off and jumped back up, plucking Charmander's Pokeball from my belt and called him out.

"Charmander, Ember!"

My starter emerged from the Pokeball and immediately shot small fireballs from his mouth. The fireballs collided with the Nidoran, who was knocked back a few feet, knocked out.

"Damn!" He recalled the Poison-type. "Ryan, get up! We're getting the hell out of here!"

"Coming!" said his partner, Ryan, as he stood up shakily and wobbled after his partner. "Andrew, we screwed up, didn't we?"

"Yeah, badly!"

They both went into the trees and were gone. I watched to make sure they wouldn't come back, then relaxed and looked down at Charmander, heart pounding. "Thanks, Charmander."

He smiled. "Charmander."

I recalled him and turned to Karen, who had come over when the two left, and Gary. They were staring at me. "What?"

"H-how did...you...you beat them..HOW?" Gary was flabbergasted. Karen, too, for that matter.

"Jack, how did you...? You beat them up?"

"Yeah. What's wrong?"

"'What's wrong?' You, an eleven-year-old, beat those _adults_ up! How the hell'd you do that?" Karen asked.

"Oh, that's right, I never told you."

"Told us what?" they said in unison.

"I took some martial arts classes. You know, for self-defense. I doubt I'll be able to rely on my Pokemon to protect me all the time. There may be some instances when I'll have to defend my self, with no help from my Pokemon."

"Oh. Well that explains it, I guess."

"Well, thanks for that, Jack." Gary blew a strand of hair from his face. "But I didn't really need the help. I could have taken those guys out myself, y'know."

"Yeah, right. Liar," Karen muttered under her breath.

Gary shot her a glare, then looked back at me. "I guess I owe you one."

I nodded and he turned and walked away.

"Damn, that boy is so rude," Karen said. " You just saved his Pokemon, and he still can't even thank you properly."

"Eh, whatever." I shrugged. "I'm sure he would have done the same if it were me."

"But that wouldn't have been you. You would have kicked those guy's asses," Karen pointed out, index finger raised.

I laughed. "Yeah, I sure would have."

Karen and I arrived back at our room in the Pokemon Center at about noon, and I pulled out my map to see where we should go next. We sat on my bed, studying it.

"Okay, looks like the only other place to go is Pewter City," I said.

"And they have a Gym there. Look." Karen pointed at a small Pokeball symbol on the map, inside the rather large square that marked Pewter.

"Well, then, I guess we go to Pewter."

"Wait." She pointed at an area of trees between Viridian and Pewter. "Don't we have to go through Viridian Forest to get to Pewter?"

"Yeah, but I hear it's full of Bug-types, so they shouldn't be much trouble for Charmander and your Pidgey."

I stood, put away the town map in my backpack, and slung it on. "Might as well go now."

Karen stood and put her bag on. We ate a quick lunch in the cafeteria and left the Center, heading north. About twenty minutes later, we arrived at a path that led into some trees about thirty yards away.

We walked down the path and stood before the entrance to the forest. A sign off to the side of the path told any travelers the name of the forest

"Alright, here goes," I said.

Together, Karen and I stepped further down the path and ventured into Viridian Forest.


	4. Viridian Forest

Chapter 4: Viridian Forest

"It's kinda spooky here."

Karen and I walked down the path that winded through Viridian Forest. It had already been two days since we entered the forest, and there seemed to be no end to it in sight.I glanced around, noting all the Caterpie, Weedle, even the Metapod and the Kakuna, that watched us as we walked past. "Yeah, it is creepy having all those Bug Pokemon just staring at us."

The journey down the path was a rather uneventful one. Finally, as the dark started to descend on us, and Karen started complaining about her feet hurting, we stopped and set up a campsite in a nearby clearing. I had Charmander start a fire, and we sat around it, eating some berries we found, before recalling Charmander and crawling into our sleeping bags. I lay on my back, staring up at the stars, until my eyes started to feel heavy and I let sleep take me.

* * *

Hours later, I suddenly woke up, seeing that the full moon was at it's peak in its nightly travel across the sky ,the light shining down illuminating the entire clearing around us. I briefly wondered why I had so suddenly woken up, when I heard a movement off to my right. I sat up and stared into the shadows cast by the trees, looking for anything that might be the source of the noise. Seeing nothing, I was about to lie back down when I heard the leaves of the trees rustling. As I stared into the trees again, my pounding heart almost stopped when a pair of bright red eyes suddenly appeared. The eyes stared back at me, unmoving, unflinching, unblinking. What scared me most about the eyes was that I couldn't see any pupils. They were just large, red, almond-shaped eyes, that seemed almost to glow. As they stared, I slowly reached for Charmander's Pokeball at my belt.

My heart was pounding, the adrenaline was coursing throughout my body, sweat started to dampen my skin, and, due to the sudden increase in heartbeat, a small headache made itself present. I expanded Charmander's Ball and braced myself for an attack. At my movement, the eyes narrowed and the leaves rustled again. I wanted to send Charmander out, but I was frozen by fear, and the eyes seemed to get bigger, as if they were getting closer. My breath started to get labored as I watched the eyes approach the edge of the clearing. They stopped just short of the moonlight and stared.

I gripped Charmander's Pokeball and was about to send him out, there was a buzzing noise, and the eyes retreated back into the shadows, until they disappeared. I sat there, watching the shadows for the eyes. Finally, after twenty minutes of nothing but the normal noises of nocturnal Pokemon, and no sign of the eyes, I shrunk Charmander's Pokeball, replaced it onto my belt and lay back down. After about half an hour of staring at the stars, the adrenaline rush finally faded and my heart slowed down to it's normal rhythm, and after another hour, the after effects of the adrenaline took over and I closed my eyes, falling into a restless sleep.

* * *

I didn't get much sleep that night, however, because, suddenly, after my encounter with the red eyes, it got _extremely_ cold. For most of the night, I lay curled up into a ball, shivering, hugging myself to conserve any warmth. I suffered through the intense cold for what seemed like hours on end, when I suddenly noticed that, at some point during the bone-chillingly cold night, Karen had moved closer to me, until we were so close together that I could feel her breath every time she exhaled. I smiled despite the freezing weather, and closed my eyes again, falling back into a fitful sleep.

I woke up again, this time seeing that the sun had risen and was shining it's warming light down on us. The warm rays melted away the cold from the previous night, and I crawled out of my sleeping bag once I was sufficiently warm, trying not to jostle Karen and wake her. I stood and faced the sun, eyes closed, enjoying the warmth. I opened them, and saw something strange. Flying southeast was what seemed to be a bird. But no ordinary bird. This one seemed a lot larger than others. As it flew, the sun glinted off of it's feathers, and even from this distance I could see that it was dark blue, and every time it flapped, it seemed as though small pieces of glitter fell from its wings, almost like snow flakes.

Curious, I took my Pokedex from my backpack, slipped it into my pocket, and strolled over to a nearby tree. I stretched, then leaped and took hold of the lowest branch, swinging myself onto it. From there, I jumped up and kicked off another branch higher up, then kicked off another. I kept this up until I reached the top of the tree. Once there, I poked my torso from the leaves and studied the flying bird. I could see it slightly more clearly now, given my higher vantage point, twenty feet above the ground. I looked down at Karen, who was still sleeping soundly near the fire that had burned itself out. Although there was little point for it, I didn't feel any warmth from it last night.

I looked back at the bird and brought up my Pokedex. I opened it and and aimed it at the bird. The device whirred, then after a few seconds, the female voice came forward. "Subject too far away. Approach subject for accurate description. Subject must be within sixty meters to accurately scan."

"Sixty meters..." I looked back at the bird, who was now far enough away that I could barely recognize it as a bird. "That's a lot more than sixty meters." I sighed . "I wonder if I'll ever see that bird again." I watched it fly away until it disappeared beyond the horizon to the south east.

"Hey, Jack, what're you doing up there?"

I looked down at Karen, who had now woken up and was looking up, hand over her face to shield her eyes from the sun. "Nothing, just climbing a tree, seein' the sights."

"Um, okay. But come on back down here, we should get on towards Pewter."

"Be right down." I pocketed my Pokedex and jumped down to a lower branch, then another, and more until I jumped down from the lowest branch I had first used to climb up, landing in a crouch front of Karen.

"Well, well, look at you, all acrobatic. What, did you take gymnastics classes, too?"

I smirked and stood up. "So how'd you sleep last night?"

She blushed and smiled sheepishly. "Um, not so well. It was freezing!"

"That it was. C'mon, we should get on going."

I kicked some dirt over the fire pit and we packed up, setting back down on the road to Pewter.

"Hey, you didn't answer my question!"

* * *

An hour later, I gradually got an uneasy feeling building up in the pit of my stomach. I glanced around then stopped, realization hitting me like a Rhydon's Tackle. I stopped and glanced around again, on full alert now.

Karen stopped as well and sent a puzzled look my way. "Why'd you stop?"

I held up a hand to gesture her to be silent. "Sshhh. You hear that?"

She looked around for a few seconds. "Um, I don't hear anything."

"Exactly," I said after a moment of silence.

Karen gasped and looked around again. "I don't hear anything!"

She was right. It was completely silent, deathly silent. No calls from bird Pokemon, no chirping of Bugs, no grass or branches being pushed aside as Pokemon walked along, nothing. Just the occasional noise of a breeze whistling through the trees. "Something's here."

"Huh?" Karen was starting to get scared. "What do you mean, something?"

I was silent for a moment, straining my ears, trying to detect _some_ noise. "I heard that when there's something big prowling through a forest or something, it scares off all of the local Pokemon. Thus, the lack of noise."

I stood there, eyes darting about, hand hovering near Charmander's Pokeball, ready to send him out against anything that might attack. After a tense minute in which Karen got more and more scared, I started to relax, then froze when a loud rustling made us jump. I spun to our right, standing in front of Karen, looking at the trees at the side of the road. A moment of silence followed, in which I started to relax yet again and my heart rate slowed when red eyes appeared. Eyes just like the ones from last night.

I took a step back, my heart going into a furious thumping, and Karen gasped. The eyes stared out at me before disappearing. I watched the trees in apprehension, and jumped when a yellow blur shot out of the foliage. Karen and I ducked and it flew over our heads. It circled back, heading for Karen, and I tackled her to the ground and it flew over head once more. As it flew down the road, it made a buzzing sound, and I found myself thinking, _Is it a...?_

It stopped as a kid, a few years older than us, maybe thirteen, fourteen, maybe fifteen, wearing brown khaki shorts, a white T-shirt, and brown sneakers, calmly strolled out of the bushes, carrying a large net over one shoulder, a Pokemon at his side. It was about four feet tall, with a brown hide, long arms that ended with three-fingered hands, stubby legs that had two toes each, two in front, another in the back, and a mouth with long, white teeth that ran horizontally inside. But, by far the most intimidating feature of the Pokemon were the two horns on its head that were dotted with spikes. The boy walked to the center at the road, his Pinsir gnashing its pincers at us. I stood and helped Karen to her feet as the other Pokemon stopped and hovered in front of his Trainer.

It had a yellow body, segmented into three parts, the lower part of which had two stripes and a large stinger. The middle-the thorax, I think it's called-were where its arms and legs came from. It had a oblong head, where red, almond-shaped eyes and two antennae shaped like sevens resided. Its wings gave off a buzzing sound as they flapped at a speed to fast to see clearly. But all I could focus on were the huge stingers on each of its arms, and those eyes. My memory flashed back to last night, to the eyes that I saw in the middle of the night. Its identity was now revealed to me.

The Beedrill buzzed a few times to its Trainer, then turned to face us as his Trainer spoke. "So, you're the two newbies that Beedrill found last night." He looked us up and down, lingering a little more than I liked on Karen. "You really do look like newbies." He shrugged. "Eh, I guess you'll do. Kakuna, Beedrill String Shot!"

Two Kakuna that I hadn't noticed were hanging from branches nearby and the Bug Pokemon shot thick strings at us from their mouths. They hit us, and immediately stuck. Karen and I cried out in shock as the string rapidly wrapped around us.

"What the hell are you doing?" I shouted at him.

"What's it look like? Tying you up so you can't do anything when I take your Pokemon."

"What?" I screamed in rage, before we fell down, the string seeming to never end.

"Why would you do that?" Karen yelled from the ground.

"Why?" He put a hand on his chin, feigning looking pensive, before his face lit up, as if he just got an idea. "Oh, yeah, to sell them off, of course!"

"Why do you want to sell them?" Karen shouted at him in outrage.

"I need the money," he replied as if it were so simple that anyone could have figured it out.

By now, Karen and I were cover in sticky, silk string up to our chests. My arms were pinned to my sides, so I couldn't reach Charmander's Pokeball, and I couldn't stand, as my legs were tied together, preventing much movement. All Karen and I could do was roll around in a futile attempt to escape. The string wrapped us in a cocoon, and it quickly traveled up to our necks. Soon, it would engulf our heads, and probably suffocate us.

"Let us go, you asshole!" I shouted.

He just laughed, his Pinsir joining in. "Fat chance. Goodbye, newbies!"

"You f-" My words were cut off as the string finally reached my head, completely enveloping it. All I could hear now were muffled words as the light above me was blocked out by three shapes. Already, I could feel my air starting to run out. The tallest, undoubtedly the Trainer, said something and the form of his Pinsir came closer, the horns snapping together. As it was about to make contact, there was a muffled shout, and the boy turned to face whoever it was. He pointed, commanding his Pokemon to attack, and they darted forward. There were the muffled sounds of a battle raging, the two Trainers shouting out command I couldn't make out, before the Bug Trainer's Pokemon were sent flying back, obviously defeated. He shouted and recalled his Pokemon before dashing off. There was a silence for a few moments before another figure stood above me, with what looked like a Pokemon at their side. The Trainer said something to their Pokemon, and it lifted an arm and slashed down. I clenched my eyes shut, fully expecting to feel pain burst from my waist, but only heard a tearing sound as my prison was ripped away.

I gasped in air, and looked up at my savior, and jerked in surprise. "Miranda?"

"The one and only!" She winked. I then noticed the Scyther that was standing behind her. It must have set me free. She stood and walked over to Karen's wrapped-up form and almost grudgingly had her Pokemon set her free. Karen gasped like I had when she emerged and sat up, looking up at Miranda. "Miranda!"

I stood and helped Karen to her feet and turned to Miranda. "You drove off that Trainer just now?"

"Yep, me and Scyther here," she smiled, proud of her Pokemon, who actually seemed indifferent to the situation. "He called himself a Bug Maniac, and claimed to be the master of Bug-types. But that was a load of crap. I took him down with just one Bug-type, huh, Scyther?" Scyther just nodded.

"Um, thanks for that," Karen said, plucking off a piece of string that was stuck to her skirt.

Miranda smiled. "You're welcome."

"Not to sound ungrateful, or anything," I said as I dusted myself off, "but what are you doing here?"

"Well, I was flying above the forest on my Fearow just now, heading for home, when I noticed a commotion. So I flew lower, saw what that guy was doing, and decided to jump in and save the day." She smiled.

"Why were you heading home?" Karen asked her.

Miranda's smile faded, and she hung her head. "My mom got terribly sick. I had to go home, to be there for her," she said quietly.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Karen said.

"Where do you live?" I asked her.

She didn't respond for a moment. "Saffron City."

"Well, if we ever go by there, we'll make sure to stop by. Right, Karen?"

"Of course. Anything for a friend."

"I...I'm a friend?" Miranda asked, a little disbelievingly. "We just met yesterday."

"Of course! Anyone who saves us and our Pokemon is definitely a friend." Karen grinned, and I nodded.

Miranda sniffled and wiped at her eyes. "Thanks Jack, Karen." She sniffled once more. "Well, I really should get on going. Catch you guys later.." She plucked a Pokeball from her belt and sent out a Fearow, who stretched its neck and spread its wings. Miranda hopped on and turned to us. "Thanks, guys." She smiled and told her Fearow to take off, flying off to the west. Soon, they were out of eyesight.

"I hope her mom is okay," Karen said.

I nodded "Yeah, me, too."

* * *

Karen suddenly stopped. "Hey, what's that?"

"Oh, God, I hope it's not that guy again."

"No, no, listen. There's definitely a noise."

I listened, and sure enough, there was a faint buzzing sound, reminiscent off the Bug Maniac's Beedrill's wings. I tensed, reaching for Charmander's Pokeball as the buzzing gradually got louder. When it seemed as if it was coming from all around us, a small yellow something came tumbling out of the brush. I sent out Charmander the second I noticed the object, and Karen sent out Bubasaur. I assumed it was a Beedrill, and was about to tell Charmander to attack when Karen and I froze at stared at the little creature. It had black tips on its ears, red cheeks, and a lightning-bolt-shaped tail. Its body was dirty, but I could see it had two black, or maybe dark brown, striped across its back.

The Pikachu was panting heavily, glancing back fearfully the way it had come. It looked at me, and quickly got to its feet and ran over, past a confused Charmander, and hid behind my leg, clutching onto my jeans for dear life.

"A Pikachu? What's wrong?" I asked it.

"Piiika..." it said, shaking.

"It's terrified!" Karen said. Before she could say anymore, the buzzing intensified a whole lot more, and several more yellow figures burst from the trees. They stopped in front of us, and I knew we were in trouble.

A swarm of Beedrill were apparently the ones chasing the Pikachu, because the moment the saw it cowering behind my leg, they charged, arm stingers at the ready.

"Oh, crap!" I swiftly ducked and picked up the Pikachu, diving to the left. The Beedrill shot past, although a few stopped in time and dove at me. "Charmander, Ember!"

Charmander shot fireballs from his mouth and they hit the Bug-types, and they fell, burnt and twitching. The rest of the swarm hovered above us, staring. I counted about two dozen. I looked down at the Pikachu in arms. "What'd you do to piss them off?"

"Pika pika," it responded, shaking its head.

By now, Karen had called out her Bulbasaur and Pidgey, and I then called out Rattata. "Jack, aren't Beedrill known for aggressively chasing out an intruder in their territory?" she asked.

"Yeah. That must be why they must be so mad," I said to the little Electric rodent in my arms.

It just shrugged. "Pika."

I looked up at the Beedril, who still hovered there above us, intently gazing at the Pikachu. "Leave him alone! He was in your territory on accident, alright? So leave him be!"

The Beedrill looked at each other, buzzing amongst themselves, before one of them pointed at the three Beedrill that Charmander had burned, then, with a collective buzz that could have served as a battle cry, they dove.

"Get ready, Karen!"

For what seemed like hours, which was actually about ten minutes, we fought a fierce battle with the swarm. I'm sure that we would have lost and been severely injured, maybe even poisoned, had we not had Pidgey and Charmander, Flying- and Fire-types, respectively. With the help from their attacks, we were able to fend off the swarm.

When the last Beedrill fell, we stood there, breathing hard. Our Pokemon were exhausted after the battle, so we recalled them to rest. I looked down at the Pikachu in my arms.

"You okay?"

The Pikachu looked up and muttered a, "Pika pi..."

"Don't worry, those Beedrill won't hurt you anymore." I kneeled and set it back down on the forest floor. "Go on, it's safe to go back to...uh, wherever you're from."

"Pika pika." It turned and walked towards the brush. It stopped looked back, then shook its head and came back. "Pika pika, pi pika, pika pikachu, pika."

"What's it saying, Jack?" Karen asked.

"I, uh, don't know, but I think..." It jumped onto my shoulder. "I think it wants to come with me. Is that right, Pikachu?"

"Pika!" it said happily, nodding.

"Okay, then." I pulled an empty Pokeball from my belt and enlarged it as the Pikachu jumped down. I tossed it and it hit the Mouse Pokemon on the head. It opened, Pikachu was turned into red energy and pulled inside in a split-second, and the Pokeball fell to the ground, where it shook. It stopped after only three shakes, and I picked it up. Showing the Ball to Karen, I said, "I got a Pikachu."

"That's great!" she said. "I wish I could get a Pikachu. They're so cute!"

* * *

"Um, guys, could you please get off? My neck hurts."

Sometime later, after having caught Pikachu, I brought Charmander and Rattata out of their Pokeballs to walk along side us, Karen doing the same with her Bulbasaur and Pidgey, who was perched on her shoulder, and now all three of my Pokemon somehow managed to climb up and fit on my shoulders.

"Aw, c'mon, Jack, let them ride on you, they adore you!" Karen chimed in. "Plus, it looks so cute!"

"Well, you try having three Pokemon riding around on your shoulders for an hour, see if you like it," I grumbled.

"Pika!" Pikachu said, trying to massage my neck, but failing due to the two other Pokemon there.

"Charmander, chah," Charmander said to the two before jumping off, followed by a reluctant Rattata and Pikachu.

"Thanks, guys," I said.

Charmander patted my leg. "Chah."

I glanced over to my right, and my heart skipped a beat. I stopped and stared, and Karen bumped into me.

"What's up?"

My jaw clenched and I pointed at a small clearing. Karen followed where I was pointing and gasped. "It's him!" she said, the contempt evident in her voice.

The Bug Maniac from before, the one that tried to take our Pokemon, was standing there in the clearing, back to us, his Beedrill at his side, and I bristled when I saw and heard what he was doing.

"Beedrill, hit it again with Twin Needle!"

His Beedrill dashed forward at rammed its arm stingers at something, and there was a cry of pain. "Pika!"

Pikachu's ears perked up at that and he went down on all fours, growling, red cheeks sparking.

"He's attacking a Pikachu!" Karen said. Then the assaulted, a Pikachu, came within view, and unsuccessfully tried to dodge another Twin Needle.

Without a word, I ran forward, Karen calling out, "Jack, stop!" Paying no heed to her words, I ran up behind him, jumped, and kicked him in the back. He fell forward, face-first, into the grass before turning to face me.

"You! What the hell was that for?"

"Why the hell are you attacking that Pikachu!" I shouted at him. The Beedrill had stopped its attacks, and the poor Pikachu lay quivering beneath it.

"What's it to you?" he said, standing up. "I'm trying to capture it, so if you don't mind..." He turned to give his Beedrill another command, but I grabbed his shoulder and spun him around, and he responded by swinging at me. I blocked, then kicked him in the chest. He fell to the ground and got right back up, swinging wildly, not aiming, just trying to hit me. That's exactly why I was able to dodge, block, and deflect all of his punches. He backed up, and I noticed his Beedrill floating up behind him. He took a moment to catch his breath before pointing at me and saying, "Twin Needle!"

"Oh, crap." I dove to the side as the Bug-type zoomed by. "Charmander!" Upon hearing my cry, Charmander ran over to me as the Beedrill came around for another shot. "Ember!"

As the Bug Pokemon rushed at us, arm stingers extended to hit us with Twin Needle, the now-familiar fireballs shot out of Charmander's mouth, except now they seemed a little bigger than before. The Beedrill was coming in to fast and was too close to dodge the Fire-type attack, so it took the hit head-on and fell to the ground, unconscious.

Karen shouted, "Behind you!" and I spun and the Bug Maniac was behind me. He rammed his fist into my stomach, and I doubled over, breath knocked out of me, and saw his knee come up to meet my face. I crossed my arms over my face in time and his kneed thudded off of them. I delivered an uppercut that slammed his mouth shut and hit him with a haymaker in the mouth. He recoiled, his hand at his mouth and fell to the ground, groaning.

"That's what you get for attacking a helpless Pokemon. Despicable." I passed by him and went up to Karen, who was holding the injured Pikachu. "Is it okay?"

"She. I checked my Pokedex. It said that that heart-shaped indentation in her tail means that she's female."

I checked her tail, and sure enough, she had an indentation in her tail, that gave it a heart shape. "Huh, so she does. But I didn't think that Pokemon had differences between genders."

"C'mon, Jack, we learned about it in Trainer's School."

Thinking back, I could barely remember our teacher saying something about gender differences in some Pokemon. "I vaguely remember."

"You really should pay more attention," Karen chided me. "She's fine, she wasn't poisoned, thank goodness. All she needs is rest."

"That's good to hear."

"Pii..." she said weakly. My Pikachu jumped onto Karen's shoulder and looked down at the Pikachu.

"It's okay, Pikachu," I told him. "She'll be fine."

"Pika," he said, worried.

The female Pikachu looked up at Karen. "Pikachu..."

"What is it?" Karen asked her.

The Pokemon jumped down and pointed to Karen's belt, where she kept her Pokeballs. The Pikachu said something to my Pikachu, and he said something back before jumping onto my shoulder.

"Pi pika, pikachu."

"Huh?" I glanced at the female Pikachu. "Are you saying she wants to join us?"

He nodded. "Pi, pi pika, pikachu."

"She wants to come along to show her gratitude of being rescued? Is that it?"

"Pika!" he said, nodding. He turned to the female Pikachu. "Pika!"

Karen kneeled and said, "You want to coma along with me, Pikachu?"

She nodded, and Karen smiled, pulling an empty Pokeball from her belt. She stood and tossed the Pokeball at the Pikachu. It bounced off her shoulder and pulled her in, where it shook twice before lying still, like what happened when I caught Pikachu. Karen picked up the Pokeball, studied it for a second, then broke into a wide grin. "I finally got a Pikachu!" She hugged the ball to her chest, face lighting up like when she had caught Pidgey, and I smiled. "I promise, Pikachu, as long as you're with me, nothing like that will ever happen to you again."

"You're damn right about that. Anyone tries anything, we'll beat 'em up. They won't know what hit them." Rattata, Charmander, Pikachu, Bulbasaur, and Pidgey cheered their agreement.

Karen smiled widely at me. "Damn right."

* * *

I looked up at the indigo-hued sky above us, noting the stars starting to show. "It's getting dark, we should set up camp soon."

"Okay."

Finding a suitable clearing, we set up a fire and sat around it, our Pokemon dozing around us, Charmander in my lap.

"Quite the eventful day we had today, huh?" I said.

Karen laughed. "Yeah. Some crazy asshole tries to steal our Pokemon, we get rescued by Miranda, we fight off a swarm of Beedrill that were harassing a Pikachu, you caught the Pikachu, then we came across the same guy that tried to steal our Pokemon attacking another Pikachu, you kicked his ass, I caught the Pikachu...Eventful doesn't quite cover it, if you ask me."

I chuckled. "Guess not."

I watched the fire as it crackled and popped. I watched it even as Karen said, "Good night," and crawled into her sleeping bag and fell asleep. As the fire started to die, I gazed at the night sky above. There was still a full moon just like last night when I had seen Beedrill's eyes gazing out at me. I shook my head to dispel the memory and returned my gaze to the stars. They were far more visible here, in the middle of the Viridian Forest. I admired them, their twinkling grace, as a shooting star sped by.

I closed my eyes and made a wish. I opened my eyes again, and found it difficult to keep them open. I gently lifted Charmander out of my lap and set him on the ground beside my sleeping bag. He opened his eyes for a brief moment, then yawned, muttered a, "Charmander..." and curled up. I slipped into my sleeping bag and took my cap off, placing it near my head, on the ground. Pikachu and Rattata crawled closer to me, and I fell asleep surrounded by my Pokemon.

* * *

I was falling.

I don't know how I got here, but somehow, I was hundreds of feet in the air, and falling. Below me, I recognized the small lake that was located in Viridian City off to the left. I twisted my neck around, and my heart skipped a beat. Behind me, hovering in mid-air like some kind of metal leviathan, was what seemed to be an enormous airship. It was badly damaged, though,as I could see it was pouring smoke from several holes in its hull.

The airship was rocked by an explosion that tipped it a little to the left, right above the lake. It was suddenly outlined in a bright blue hue that seemed to propel it forward. Before I could wonder what caused it, there was a flash of light next to me. I turned and there was a long, dark-blue snake-like Pokemon, with a horn on its head and a blue orb hanging on its neck. That's when it suddenly started to glow in a bright, white light, and I woke up.

I lay there for a moment, looking up at the morning sky, before sitting up. Shaking my head and putting a hand to my face, I said, "What the hell?"

I turned as Karen stirred. "What's up?"

"Nothing. Just a weird dream, is all. Really weird," I added under my breath. I yawned, then stood, careful not to jostle my three Pokemon too much. I stretched as the morning sun's light shone down on me as Karen slipped out of her sleeping bag. After packing up, recalling our Pokemon, and eating a quick breakfast of a multitude of berries, we continued on our way to Pewter City.

Two more days of traveling later, we emerged from beneath the shaded canopy of the forest's trees, and into bright early afternoon sun. Taking a moment to adjust to the sudden influx of light bombarding our eyes, we found ourselves at one end of a rather long path that headed straight for Pewter City, not too far away. We could see the entire city from there. Besides the countless buildings, I could see that at the northern most part of the city, there was a rather large building, which I assumed was the famous Pewter City Museum. At the southern-most area the Pokemon Center and Mart were located. In the west was our destination, the Pewter Gym.

"Well, almost there!" Karen chirped.

"Yep. Let's not take longer than necessary to get there." I started down the path, Karen following. "The first thing I'm going to do is challenge the Gym Leader for my first Gym Badge." My stomach chose that moment to rumble. "Well, maybe after I eat first," I added sheepishly.


	5. Pewter Gym

Chapter 5: Pewter Gym

Upon entering the Pokemon Center, I promptly headed over to the video phones as Karen went to book us a room. I sat down at the bench in front of the a screen, picked up the receiver and placed it against my ear. I punched in a number and waited as it rang, a picture of a phone sending out a signal onscreen. On the ninth ring, I was about to hang up and try again when the screen flickered and changed, showing my mom with the receiver on her end pressed against her ear.

"Hi, mom."

"Jack! Oh, honey, how are you? Are you okay? How do you like being a Pokemon Trainer? How's Charmander? Did you catch any more Pokemon? Why the hell didn't you call earlier?"

I tried to keep up with with the sudden barrage of questions from my mom. Unsuccessfully. "Mom, one question at a time!." I sighed. "I'm fine, although a little dirty and bruised. Being a Trainer is great, and Charmander's fine. As a matter of fact, I've caught two more Pokemon, and Karen has, too. And I didn't call you in Viridian City because...well, I forgot."

"Wait, did you say you were bruised?"

_Dammit!_ I tried to come up with a good lie. "Um, you see the thing is, I fell. Pretty hard, I might add."

She nodded, apparently believing. I sighed inwardly as Mom said, "So you said you caught some new Pokemon?"

"Yep, two more." At that, Charmander popped up on my lap and Rattata and Pikachu jumped onto my shoulders. "And here they are," I added, placing a hand on my starter's head. I move my head so that Rattata's whiskers wouldn't tickle, and when I looked back at the screen, I saw my mom was gaping.

I laughed as she sputtered, "I-i-is that a _shiny _Rattata?"

"Yep."

"And it's yours?." I nodded and she said, "Oh, dear, this is...fantastic! _My _son caught a _shiny_ Pokemon! Congratulations, honey!"

"Yeah, thanks, Mom," I said, holding the receiver away from my ear. Mom sure can be loud when she wants to.

"Oh!"

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. But I think others have noticed your Rattata."

I turned, and sure enough, all of the people in the Center were gawking at my Rattata. Deciding to ignore them, I turned back to Mom. "They're just jealous."

Mom's Pikachu suddenly appeared on her shoulder. "Pika!"

"Hey, Pikachu! How are you?" I asked her.

"Pika!" she said, giving a thumbs up with her small hands.

"That's good."

I suddenly felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned and Karen was standing behind me, hand on my shoulder. My pulse quickened slightly at the unexpected contact. I tried telling myself that it was just because it had taken me by surprise.

"Oh, hi, Mrs. Grant!" Karen greeted Mom.

"Did she say something?" Mom asked me.

I realized that they couldn't hear each other, so I pressed a button next to the screen and put the receiver back in its cradle. "There, it's on speaker."

"Hi, Mrs. Grant!" Karen repeated.

"Hi, Karen. How are you doing?" Mom's voice came from two speakers, one on each side of the screen.

"Just fine, thank you."

"So Karen, Jack told me you caught some Pokemon."

"Oh, yeah, I did!." Karen took her Pokemon's Pokeballs and brought them out. Pidgey landing on her shoulder and Bulbasaur and Pikachu hopped onto the bench alongside me. "Here they are! Bulbasaur is my starter"-she patted Bulbasaur's head- "Pidgey I caught on Route 1"- she scratched the Flying-type's neck, eliciting a happy coo- "and Pikachu I just caught a few days ago in Viridian Forest," she told Mom, beaming.

"Ah, so you both have a Pikachu!"

"Mm-hmm," was my response.

"Take car of them, kids, and they'll be sure to take care of you, too!" Mom said, smiling.

"You can count on it, Mrs. Grant!" Karen vowed, ever-present enthusiasm showing.

There was a _ding _from Mom's end. "Oh, that's dinner. Gotta go, Jack. Take care of yourself, honey! And remember to call!"

"Will do."

The screen went black.

"Your mom's so nice."

"Yeah, I know."

I stood from the bench and we went to our room.

* * *

"So this is the Pewter Gym, eh?"

We stood in front of the entrance to the Pewter City Gym. They building looked pretty much the same as the Gym in Viridian City, except the building was a stone gray color, as opposed to the light brown of the Viridian Gym.

"What's this?" She stepped up to a sign that that was placed next to the double doors. "'Pewter City Gym. Gym Leader: Brock. The Rock-Solid Pokemon Trainer.'"

"So the Leader specializes in Rock-types?"

"My Bulbasaur could take them on! Although Charmander may have some trouble, being a Fire-type, and all," Karen said as I fidgeted with Charmander's Pokeball.

"Is he even here?" I peered through the glass doors, but I couldn't see a thing since all the lights were off. "All the lights are off."

We looked through the doors, hoping to see any sign of anyone inside. No such luck. Sighing, we stepped away as someone behind us spoke. "Can I help you?"

Karen jumped and I whirled, kicking out my foot. I stopped in time, though, and I stood there like that, leg extended as if to kick someone. I lowered my leg and said, "Sorry. Reflex."

The man chuckled, momentarily breaking his serious demeanor. "It's okay. You have some sharp reflexes there, kid. I take it you're a martial artist."

I shrugged. "Somewhat."

"So, what can I do to help you?" he repeated after a short laugh. He wore a dark gray shirt with black sleeves, the top third of the front of the shirt was orange, as were the rims of the pockets, and the tall, closed collar had a green button. His khaki pants were dark brown, and his shoes were, too, along with some orange.

"We're here to challenge the Gym Leader, but he's not here, so we we'll just come back later," Karen answered.

"You're here for a Gym Badge, eh?"

I nodded.

"Well, then 'd be more than happy to accept your challenge."

It took a minute for that to sink in. We stared at him, surprised that this guy with the stony demeanor we just met could be a Trainer of Gym Leader caliber. Karen finally said, "You're Brock, the Gym Leader?"

"Yes," he affirmed.

"Well, in that case," Karen brought up Bulbasaur's Pokeball, "I challenge you. Let's do this!"

I nodded, saying, "Me, too," fingering Charmander's Pokeball.

"I'm happy to accept." As Karen was about to pump her fist in the air, Brock held up a hand. "But first, I have to run some errands."

Karen deflated. "Oh." But then she perked up. "We can wait! We're not in a hurry or anything! But, what are you gonna do?"

"Oh, it's nothing, just picking up some groceries. Pokemon sure can eat a lot. Especially this guy," he said, fingering a Pokeball at his belt. "I'll be ba-" He stopped and stared behind us. We turned and peered into the darkened Gym.

"What's wrong?" Karen asked.

"Nothing. I just thought I saw someone."

"There!" I said, pointing. At the far side of the Gym, I could see a figure prowling around in the darkness. "Someone's in there!"

"No one's supposed to be here," Brock said, opening the doors. The lights came ran inside, but as we scanned the opposite end of the large room that consisted of a rocky battlefield with some bleachers on either side, we saw no one.

"I'm sure I saw someone..." I mumbled. I shivered as the temperature suddenly dropped. It was at room temperature one second, and the next, I was freezing. I caught movement out of the corner of my eye. I turned and I stiffened when I saw my shadow moving on its own. Then my blood ran cold as two red eyes and a huge grin appeared on my shadow's head. Karen noticed me staring, and she gasped upon seeing my shadow.

"There's something there!" she shouted.

Brock whirled just as a ball of black energy shot at him. "Crap!" He managed to dive out of the way and the ball kept going and slammed on the ceiling of the Gym.

Karen and I backed up, watching as my shadow stayed where I had been a second ago. I positioned myself in front of Karen, pulling out Charmander's Pokeball.

"That was a Shadow Ball!" Brock cried. "I think it's a-" His words were cut off as he jumped out of the way of another Shadow Ball. And it came right at us.

I pushed Karen away and was about to dive away when the attack hit me. I flew back few feet and hit the wall, slumping to the dirt floor. "Damn, that hurt," I groaned.

"Jack!" Karen ran over and kneeled by me as I sat up. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." I gritted my teeth as I stood shakily. "I thought that Shadow Ball would be stronger..." I tubbed my chest where the attack hit me. "What the hell is it?"

My question was answered as my shadow laughed and a large creature emerged from it, dispersing the shadow. It was about my height, and purple all over. It had pointy ears, red eyes, and a malicious grin.

"It's a Gengar!" Brock shouted.

The Gengar laughed a laugh that sounded hollow and sent another Shadow Ball our way. I pushed Karen away again and I leaped over it, kicking off the wall behind me and soaring into the air. As I passed over the Ghost-type, I threw Charmander's Pokeball, shouting out, "Ember!"

My starter came out of his Pokeball and immediately shot large fireballs the Gengar. The Ghost Pokemon recoiled from the attack, holding its stubby arms in front of its face. Charmander stopped his attack and the Gengar hissed, holding its arm close to its body. I could see some smoke coming from the arm. "It's got a burn!"

The Gengar dashed into the shadows of the bleachers. We looked around for it, hoping to see it before it attacked. I spotted movement in Charmander's shadow and cried, "Charmander, your shadow!"

Charmander looked down as the Gengar came flying out, delivering a strong punch, throwing Charmander into the air from the force of it.

"That was Shadow Punch!" Brock said.

"Ember again!" Charmander spun and shot fire balls that were at least the size of my fist in the Gengar's face. That took me by surprise, as just the day before they were only the size of my pinky. It cried out in pain and retreated into the shadow. As Charmander landed on the ground, I noticed that he didn't seem to injured. Then I remembered that when a Pokemon is Burned, its attack is practically cut in half. Shadow Punch was a physical move, so it didn't do as much damage as it normally would have.

There was silence for a minute, the only sound being that of my labored breathing. Karen had by now brought out Bulbasaur, who had her vines extended, waiting to fend of an attack and counter. My breathing began to slow, and Brock said, "I think it's gone."

That was when the Gengar suddenly jumped out of Brock's shadow, trying to catch him with his guard down. He was ready, though, and sent out one of his Pokemon. I watched in awe as the Pokemon that appeared towered over us, horn on its head reaching two-thirds of the way up the ceiling. It roared at the Ghost-type, and the Gengar froze for a moment before shaking if off and threw a Shadow Ball. The Onix lowered its head and the Shadow Ball collided, and when Onix raised its head, it didn't seem hurt at all. As Karen ran up alongside me, the Gym Leader gave a command to his huge Pokemon as the Gengar stared, dumbfounded that its Shadow Ball seemingly did nothing.

"Rock Tomb."

Onix roared and slammed its tail against the ground, sending a shower of rocks my size zooming towards the Ghost-type. The Gengar turned to flee, but it wasn't fast enough and the rocks slammed into it, burying it underneath all of them. Onix brought its tail back around behind it, and the Gym was silent once again. The pile of rocks shifted every now and then, and we breathed a sigh.

"Okay, it's down-" Brock froze as a dark shape started slipping out of the pile. The shape fell to the ground, and we saw that it was the Gengar, still clinging to consciousness. It stood shakily, then fell on all fours. It stayed like that for a moment while we watched it, the it reared its head back and a loud cry erupted from its mouth. We flinched at the noise as it collapsed, seemingly unconscious.

Before we could question the reason of the cry, two more shapes came flying into the Gym and stopped, hovering over the Gengar. Karen stepped up beside me, and Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Onix eyed the newcomers warily. The figures drifted closer to the fallen Ghost-type and the trio were shrouded in a thin mist, before two surges of dim light went from the Gengar to the new figures, and one from each went to the Gengar. The mist faded, and the Gengar stood easily, as if it wasn't injured. The other two turned to face us, and I was able to recognize them. One of them was pretty much just a face, shrouded in a purple mist, and the other one looked like a huge head with two disembodied hands floating in front of it.

The trio of Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar lined up side by side and smirked at us, as if to challenge us.

"How is the Gengar still standing?" Karen asked, incredulous. "It could barely stand just now!"

"I think I know," I answered. "Look at the Gastly and Haunter." The new arrivals were panting, as if they were just in a harsh battle. "They seem tired, injured. Why would they be tired, if they just got here? I can only think of only one reason.

"Pain Split."

"I was thinking the same thing," Brock said, pulling another Pokeball from his belt.

"Pain Split? Doesn't that equal the amount of health the user and the target have?" Karen asked.

"That's the basic principle, yes."

That was when the Ghost trio attacked. The Gastly and Haunter rushed forward and the Gengar shot off a Shadow Ball. The Gastly and Haunter split up, the base evolution going for Karen and it's evolved form charging at Brock. Karen was forced to back up as Bulbasaur started whipping the Gastly, and Brock sent out a Geodude from his Pokeball, giving it commands to attack. I dove to the side to avoid the incoming Shadow Ball, and jumped to my feet as the Gengar shot another one.

"Ember!" Charmander unleashed the Fire attack at the fast incoming Ghost attack, and upon colliding, they blew up in a brief flash of light, kicking up some dust.

I raised my arms over my eyes to protect them from the dust, and when I reopened them, the Gengar came dashing out of the small dust cloud, ever-present grin on it's face. It wasn't too far away, and it was coming in fast, so I quickly gave a vague command for Charmander to attack.

When he did, though, I noticed his claws took on a metallic look as he swung them at the Ghost-type. It's grin faded as Charmander slashed with his claws, slamming the Gengar onto the ground, stopping cold.

"What was that move?"

"Your Charmander just learned Metal Claw!" Brock called. "It's a Steel-type move!"

"Metal Claw..." The Gengar jumped back and drifted away before opening its mouth and three large purple balls of sludge shot out. "Oh, crap, Sludge Bomb! Ember!"

Charmander fired his attack against the Poison attack, colliding and stopping any more movement forward. The Sludge Bomb fell to the ground, where it shriveled up as it burned. The Gengar stared at the sludge, shocked that Charmander was able to stop it like that. I took it's moment of surprise to my advantage and told Charmander to use Ember again. The Gengar reacted too slowly and was hit full-force by the Fire attack, knocking out of the air. It quickly stood and fired another Sludge Bomb.

"Ember!" The fist-large fireballs met with some of the globules of sludge, but not all of them. One of them escaped being incinerated and kept its course towards Charmander. Without any orders, Charmander slashed at the sludge with his Metal Claw, and the Poison attack instantly burst in all directions.

"Charmander!" As it turns out, I had no reason to worry, because Charmander was just fine. I was at first confused, then I suddenly remembered the type match-up: Poison had absolutely no effect on Steel. "Metal Claw!" I shouted as the Gengar, mad that none of its attack hit their target, fired another Sludge Bomb. Charmander swiftly slashed, cut, and swiped, bursting all of the poisonous projectiles. The Gengar's eye twitched, distraught that all of it's attacks were rendered ineffective. "Now! Metal Claw!"

Charmander leaped and slashed the Metal Claw across the Gengar's face. The Ghost-type cried out in pain and fell as my starter landed back on solid ground. I took the lapse in the battle to glance over to see how Brock and Karen were faring. Brock, true to his title as Gym Leader, was putting a lot of pressure on the Haunter. All the Ghost-type could do was dodge the Onix and Geodude's attacks, but anyone could see that it was slowing down, obviously tired, but refusing to give up, probably to please it's master.

I felt some pride well up as I looked over at Karen. She had brought out her Pidgey and Pikachu, and all three of her Pokemon were working at defeating the Gastly. It, too, was tiring quickly. No matter how fast it may have been, the fatigue inflicted by the Pain Split prevented it from successfully dodging Bulbasaur's Vine Whip. It cried out as Pikachu hit it with a Thundershock. The Gastly writhe as the electricity course through its misty form.

I turned back to face the Gengar and sent out Pikachu when I noticed that Charmander was breathing hard. I was about to command Pikachu to use Thundershock when I heard Karen's own command to her Pikachu. "Iron Tail!"

I whirled in surprise, saw her Pikachu leap, tail metallic like Charmander's Metal Claw, and swing, slamming it into the Gastly. I ducked and the Gastly flew past and crashed into the Gengar. I stared incredulously from the out cold Gastly sprawled over the Gengar, who was trying to get out form under it, then to Karen, then to the Ghosts, and back to Karen.

"When the hell did Pikachu learn Iron Tail?"

"She already knew it when I captured her," she responded as she trotted over, her Pokemon at her heels.

"And you didn't think of telling me?"

She shrugged. "It didn't really seem important. 'Sides, you didn't ask."

Before we could say anymore, we heard Brock's warning of, "Heads up!" I looked as the Haunter zoomed past me and crashed into the Gengar that had managed to free itself from the Gastly, and they tumbled to the ground, the Haunter unconscious like its pre-evolved form. The Gengar was still, so I assumed it was knocked out, too.

"Did...did we beat them?" Karen eyed the Pokemon warily.

"I think so," Brock answered her question, walking over to us.

I was totally taken by surprise when I heard applause. I turned and only now took notice of the crow that had gathered at the entrance of the Gym, cheering our successful defeat of the invasive Ghost Pokemon. I must have been really focused on battling the Gengar to not have noticed them at all. "When did they get here?" I muttered.

Brock pulled out three Pokeballs and threw them at the Ghosts. They were sucked in and didn't give much resistance, so the Pokeballs stopped moving after only two shakes. Brock calmly bent and picked them up before clipping them to his belt.

"Why'd you catch them?" Karen questioned. "I thought you specialized in Rock-types."

"I do. I'm going to give them to a friend of mine, who's a Ghost-type specialist."

"Who is he?"

Brock just smiled, as if unwilling to share an inside joke. "I'm sure you'll meet him someday."

I kneeled down on one knee to inspect my Pokemon's injuries. Pikachu was perfectly fine, as I had just sent him out, but Charmander was panting, dirty all over. Straightening up, I addressed Brock. "I can't take the Gym challenge right now. My Charmander is too tired to battle anymore, and I would be an irresponsible Trainer if I forced him to in his current condition." I recalled my Pokemon into their Pokeballs, gave Brock a nod of goodbye, he returned it, and I calmly strolled out of the Gym, the crowd parting to let me past. I heard Karen say something to Brock and she followed me outside and to the Pokemon Center.

Brock admired Jack's noble intentions. Other challengers would have likely had their Pokemon battle right away after partaking in as taxing a battle as the boy's Charmander had been. He addressed the crow that had gathered inside his Gym to watch the battle with an authoritative voice. "Okay, people, there's nothing else to see here, so I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

The crowd left with some groans, but compliments of, "No wonder Brock's the Gym Leader", "Those Ghost Pokemon looked tough", "Those kids were pretty good, even though they're as young as they are", and "Those kids just might be a match for Brock," reached Brock's ears as they all filed out.

As per his usual, Brock's expression was serious, showing little emotion, as he went over to close the doors to his Gym. He turned and studied the damage dealt to his beloved Gym.

The first Shadow Ball the Gengar threw at him that had impacted with the wall had shattered several window, and even knocked out a chunk of concrete. The bleachers on the eastern side of the interior were the only ones that took damage, and fortunately, it was minimal, with one of the seats broken and a few others charred by Jack's Charmander's Ember. Brock was truly surprised when Jack's Charmander learned Metal Claw, and admired how he used it against the Gengar's Sludge Bomb. Poison had no effect against Steel, and it showed how ingenious and knowledgeable about type matchups Jack was. He recalled that Karen's Pikachu knew Iron Tail, and chuckled. He wondered whether having Steel-types moves in their arsenals would give them a chance to defeat him. _Nah, I doubt it, _he thought.

The biggest damage to the Gym was the large gash in the battlefield, where his Onix had slammed his tail to use Rock Tomb. He glanced around a bit more, then sighed. "Those damn Ghosts," he muttered, running a hand through his brown spiked-up hair. He called for his Gym Trainers and set about fixing up the Gym.

When he finally had time to himself, an hour had already passed. He looked about at the Gym Trainers working to repair to he Gym, and figured they could handle the rest themselves. He turned an entered his office at the back. Closing the door behind him, he placed his Pokeballs in a healing machine and sat at his desk and started on some dreaded paperwork that needed done. Sure, being a Gym Leader is a prestigious position, everyone in town looks up to you, but all of the damn paperwork is enough to put someone off on becoming Leader.

Half an hour later, with a sigh he set the last of it atop of a pile of papers and took a swig from a water bottle. He rolled his neck to get the kinks out, then moved to his video phone. He lifted the receiver and dialed a number. On the fifth ring, someone answered.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's me, Brock."

The speaker was shrouded in shadows, making it hard to see his face, although Brock could make out a small smile. "Ah, Brock, how are you, my friend?"

"Fine, I'm fine. The reason I call is because my Gym was attacked today, by three Ghost Pokemon."

His friend frowned. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm okay. The only thing that was damaged was my Gym, albeit minimally. I actually had the help of two young Trainers. They were pretty good. But, anyway, I caught the Ghost Pokemon."

The speaker on the other end of the line raised an eyebrow. "You did?"

"Yeah. Well, I'm a Rock-type specialist, and I don't know crap about Ghosts, and seeing as how you specialize in Ghost-types, I thought I would give them to you."

"Hm, maybe. Which Pokemon are they?"

With a grin, Brock responded, "The whole evolutionary family of Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar."

His friend was silent for a minute, before speaking. "All three of them?"

Brock simply nodded.

"Well, send them over already! I've been wanting to get all three of those for a while now."

With a nod, Brock took the Pokeballs holding the Ghosts and placed them in the Transfer machine alongside the phone. The glass covering slid shut and Brock reported, "They're on their way." The Pokeballs were hit by a bolt of light one by one, and they disappeared. On the other end, the flashes indicating the arrival of the Pokemon momentarily lit up Brock's friend's face. He was able to make out his long orange hair and the ever-present purple head band.

"Hey, why's your Gym so dark?"

His friend had been reaching for the Pokeballs but pulled his hand back to answer. "I had remodeled. My Ghosts like it better dark like this. Plus, I use the darkness as training, of sorts. Battling in the dark sharpens my eyesight and reflexes." He sighed. "The downside is that it takes a whole lot longer for my eyes to adjust to sunlight after extended periods in here."

"I see."

"So were those Trainers you mentioned challengers?" his friend asked, holding one of the newly arrived Pokeballs.

"Yes, they were. They were actually standing at the doors when I came. They were going to leave since the Gym was closed, but I came along before they did."

"They must be formidable opponents."

"I would say so, too. The boy, Jack, he battled the Gengar with his Charmander, and managed to defeat it."

"Really?" He glanced at the Pokeball holding the Gengar. "Is he just a beginning Trainer?"

"I think so. As far as I know, he had only two Pokemon, Charmander and Pikachu."

Brock's friend rolled the Gengar's Pokeball in his hand before responding. "This Gengar just evolved."

Brock's eyebrows went up. "You can tell that?"

"Your forget, Brock, I have a powerful connection with Ghost Pokemon. That's probably why a new Trainer was able to defeat it. It recently evolved. It must have been unaccustomed to its new form and stronger abilities."

Brock nodded his agreement. "You may have a point. Even so, Jack still seems like a a formidable Trainer. Well, it's been good speaking with you, my friend. These Trainers just may challenge you one day, so be ready."

"Same here," he replied with a nod. "And I will be ready. Oh, one more thing."

"What's up?"

"Have you heard about the new Pokeballs?"

Brock cocked his head to the side. "No, I haven't heard anything about any new Pokeballs. Why?"

"The Pokemon League has officially decided to release a new kind of Pokeball for use by all Trainers." He reached down to his side and lifted a Pokeball for Brock to see, who frowned.

"I don't see what's so different about it." The Pokeball was the ordinary red-and-white, although he did notice that it was a different size. "It's just a little bigger."

"That's where you're wrong, my friend." Brock frowned again and his friend went on to explain. "You see, the old Pokeballs had to be enlarged to send the Pokemon within out." He took another Pokeball from his desk in his left hand and demonstrated. "This one, however"-he indicated the newer model in his right hand-"has no need to enlarge. You simply press the button, and..." He did so, and the Pokeball snapped open, sending out the Pokemon inside, a small dark green Pokemon that had a ring of red jewels around its neck. "There, Pokemon sent out. You see, this way, you can send into battle any Pokemon much faster now." He returned the Pokemon to its Pokeball and replaced it back on his belt, and put the other Ball back into his desk.

Brock, intrigued, said, "Hmm, interesting. I just may get one of those Pokeballs."

"You won't have to wait much longer, they're about to be released in Kanto, too."

Brock nodded. "Well, I'll talk to you later, my friend."

"Farewell." With that, the screen went blank and the call ended.

Brock placed the phone back on it's cradle, going over the benefits of the newer model Pokeball, and stood when he heard one of his Gym Trainers from the battlefield. "Leader Brock is busy right now, so I'll be your opponent until he's ready."

"Fine by me!" That sounded like the the young girl that had battled the Gastly, Karen.

There came the familiar sound of Pokeballs popping open and then the sounds of battling erupted. Brock took his Pokeballs from the machine and placed them on his belt. He stepped out of his office but kept to the back of them Gym, watching the battle. In no time, Karen's Bulbasaur defeated the Gym Trainer's Geodude. Brock stepped forward as the Trainer recalled his defeated Pokemon, clapping slowly.

"That was a good battle. So I take it you're here to challenge me?" Brock asked her, taking his position at one end of the field, opposite Karen.

"Yep, and we're gonna win!" she responded, pumping her fist. Her Bulbasaur let out a cry of agreement.

Brock glanced over to the bleachers and saw Jack sitting at the very top. "You're here to challenge me, too?"

Jack simply nodded.

Brock turned back to Karen. "Well, then, might as well get started." He pulled a Pokeball from his belt and sent out the Pokemon within. "Go, Geodude!" The ball snapped open and the Pokemon appeared in front of him, giving out a battle cry.

"I'm going with Bulbasaur." Bulbasaur hopped forward, eager to begin.

"Then let's begin, shall we? Tackle!"

"Vine Whip!"

* * *

**Author's Note: **And so it begins. The Gym battle for the coveted Boulder Badge.

Are you guys getting enough characterization from Jack and Karen?


	6. Battle for the Boulder Badge

**Chapter 6-Battle for the Boulder Badge**

Yes, I know it's been three months since I last updated. I was hit by writer's block. You know what they say-shit happens. First and foremost, though, I would like to thank Cantarella of Odile. Five reviews in one day. That's a record! Thank you.

This chapter is a little shorter than the rest, but I hope you like it nevertheless. And please, if you like this, leave a review. You have no idea how much it means to me when you do. It gives me a reason to continue writing it.

* * *

Two hours later, Nurse Joy gave our Pokemon a clean bill of health, and we picked them up and headed for the Gym once more. We let out our starters to walk at our sides, and while Bulbasaur was content to walk, Charmander opted to hop onto my shoulder.

"How come you always want to ride around on my shoulder?" I asked.

He waved dismissively and I shrugged, jostling Charmander and receiving a playful smack in the head in turn.

"Oh, come on, Jack," Karen said, walking next to me, "it's cute."

"Get the hell out of the way!"

Upon hearing the unexpected shout I turned. Just in time for someone to plow into me, and we tumbled to the ground in a heap. Fortunately, Charmander had jumped off my shoulder in time, avoiding any harm. We tumbled to the ground in a tangle of legs and arms as Karen jumped away from the collision. I looked at him, then growled, "Damn it, Gary." I disentangled myself from him and pushed him off, then got to my feet and dusted myself off as he stood.

"Damn it, Jack, what the hell is wrong with you?" Gary asked.

"I could ask you the very same thing," I replied with a scowl.

"Bah, I don't have time for this. Come on, Squirtle." He pushed past me, Squirtle at his heels.

"Where are you off to in such a hurry?" Karen asked him. Charmander had by now returned to his perch on my shoulder.

"I'm off to Cerulean City."

"Cerulean? Why?" I questioned.

"To challenge the Gym there. Why else?"

"Why challenge the Gym Leader there?" Karen asked.

A smug smile crept onto his face, and I started to have the sneaking suspicion that...

"I already won the Boulder Badge."

Karen's jaw dropped and my eyes widened. Karen raised her arm and pointed at the badge he had taken out of his pocket to show off.

"Y-y-you already won a badge?"

"Yep." He placed it back in his pocket, and added, "And way before you kiddies," before turning and running off.

Karen and I shared an unbelieving glance, and our starters looked between us, wondering why we were acting so strange. I slowly shook my head, then looked back at her. "Come on, let's not let him get too far ahead of us." I walked on to the Pewter Gym, Karen and Bulbasaur trailing behind.

We arrived at the twin glass doors and pushed them open, then stopped, staring at the interior of the Gym. The gouge in the floor was gone, the window had been replaced, and the bleachers had been fixed. There was no sign of the battle that had taken place earlier, none at all. We shared a glance, then I asked, "Do you want to challenge Brock first?"

She looked straight ahead, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. Her eyes snapped open again, this time with a sudden fire in them. "Hell, yes."

She strode purposefully towards the battlefield and I climbed to the topmost seat on the bleachers. I took my seat just as a Gym Trainer, dressed in what appeared to be a Pidgeot Scout's uniform, appeared on the field.

"Leader Brock is busy right now, so I'll be your opponent until he's ready," he announced.

"Fine by me!"

We had recalled our Pokemon back into their Pokeballs, so they could get all the rest they could before challenging someone of Brock's caliber, and now Karen sent out Bulbasaur to battle with the Gym Trainer's Geodude.

It was a quick battle, simply an appetizer to the main course. A few moves and a couple of Razor Leaves later, and the Geodude fell. It's Trainer recalled it, grumbling, "I can't believe this bitch beat me." Hearing that, I leveled a death glare at him, and upon spotting it, he yelped and scurried off in fright just as clapping resounded through the Gym. From the shadows at the back, Brock stepped forward.

He stopped at the position the Gym Trainer had just vacated ."That was a good battle," he complimented. "So I take it you're here to challenge me?"

"Yep, and we're gonna win!" Karen cried confidently, pumping a fist in the air, accompanied by a cry from Bulbasaur.

The Gym Leader turned to me at the top of the bleachers and asked, "You're here to challenge me, too?"

I was still infuriated by the snob Trainer's remark, so I simply nodded as the scowl remained on my face. The Leader turned back to Karen.

"Well, then, might as well get started." He pulled a Pokeball from his belt and tossed it. "Go, Geodude!" The ball snapped open and the Pokemon appeared in front of him, giving out a battle cry.

"I'm going with Bulbasaur." Bulbasaur hopped forward, eager to begin.

"Then let's begin, shall we? Tackle!"

"Vine Whip!"

Vine's shot from the bulb on the little Grass-type's back, zooming towards the Geodude. With a remarkable speed unexpected from it's kind, the Rock-type deftly dodged them and slammed into Bulbasaur at full force, eliciting a cry of pain and surprise from her. I sat forward, shocked at the Rock Pokemon's speed, as Bulbasaur shakily got to her feet. Karen was agape, and Brock had a smile on his face.

"Surprised? I spent a lot of time training with my Geodude, working to get his speed up like this. Few can touch him. Tackle again!"

Geodude rushed Bulbasaur, who narrowly jumped out of the way in time, and kept going to put some distance between him and the Grass-type.

"Rock Throw!"

Geodude pushed his fingers into the ground like it was butter and scooped out a handful of rocks the size of my fist, which he then proceeded to lob at Bulbasaur. She managed to dodge most of them, but a couple hit their mark and she fell. Not for long, though, as she jumped right back up.

Not one to be outdone easily, Karen exclaimed, "Let's see you dodge this! Razor Leaf!"

Bulbasaur carried out the attack, an onslaught of blade-like leaves flying at Geodude. He tried to dodge at Brock's command, but the Grass attack was too swift, and it collided with its target. Geodude bellowed in pain and slumped to the ground. It looked like it was out of the fight, but then it got back up-not without effort, however. That attack really did a lot of damage, I could see from my perch in the bleachers.

"He's weak! Hit him with Vine Whip!"

Bulbasaur complied, and the dark green tendrils shot out of the bulb. Geodude moved quickly and, to my shock, he managed to catch both of them in a rocky hand.

"Holy crap!" Karen cried.

"Mega Punch, Geodude," Brock said calmly.

Geodude yanked on the vines, reeling Bulbasaur in, then delivered a powerful punch that sent her flying back to Karen.

"Bulbasaur!" Karen screamed.

My jaw clenched as I watched the little Grass-type splayed out on the floor. After a few moments, she mustered enough strength to stand and she gave a defiant cry. As she did this, I let out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding.

She stepped forward to take her place on the battlefield. I could see from up here that she was greatly injured- dirty, bruised, trickling a bit of blood, and panting. It was clear that Bulbasaur wanted to continue fighting, but Karen interjected, saying, "You did great, Bulbasaur, but you can't battle in this condition." Bulbasaur looked back at her, nonplussed, and I arched an eyebrow. I had been fully expecting Karen to keep Bulbasaur out on the battlefield. She recalled her Pokemon and sent out another Pokemon.

Pikachu stretched and then gave Geodude a confident gaze.

"Alright, Pikachu, let's start off with a Quick Attack!"

I grimaced. With Quick Attack being a Normal-type move, Geodude would take very little, if any, damage at all. But as Pikachu blurred away, I saw what Karen's true intentions were.

She was running circles around Geodude, and the more he tried to keep up with her, the dizzier he got. Soon, the Rock Pokemon was teetering back and forth, trying to stay upright. That was when Karen made her move.

"Iron Tail!"

"Defense Curl!" Brock retaliated.

Pikachu, still running at the speed of the Quick Attack, charged at Geodude, her tail hard as steel and seeming to have taken on a metallic composition, and spun and slammed it into him once in range. Geodude, however, was lucid enough to hear the command from the Gym Leader and immediately curled up into a craggy ball. Pikachu's attack should have been super effective on the Rock-type, but all it did was send Geodude rolling away at high speed.

Geodude uncurled and dug his hands into the ground, creating deeps ruts, effectively stopping him.

He yanked his hands out but had no chance to counter-attack because Pikachu hit him again. He stopped himself with his hands once more, but when Brock called for him to use Rock Throw again, Geodude just couldn't pin Pikachu down at the speed she was going. Like before, he kept spinning in place, trying to get a bead on the Mouse Pokemon that blurred past, and started to teeter. Pikachu, however, didn't strike right away. She kept up the maneuvers, zipping around the Rock Pokemon, until he could no longer stay upright and fell, extremely dizzy. He tried to get up, but kept falling right back down.

On his third attempt, Pikachu attacked. She charged and collided her steel-hard tail into the opposing Pokemon's side and sent him rolling clear across the Gym. He crashed into the wall in a cloud of obscuring dust. We watched in anticipation for any sign of the Pokemon. Finally, he tottered out of the dust, making his way back to the battlefield. He made it halfway before collapsing.

Karen jumped in joy, shouting, "We beat it! Great job, Pikachu!" A panting Pikachu smiled triumphantly.

"An Electric-type defeated my Rock-type," Brock said as he recalled Geodude. "That certainly requires a level of skill. Good job, Karen."

Karen beamed at the compliment, and I thought that she looked prettier when she was happy. But then she blanched when she remembered Brock's other Pokemon, which he sent out.

Onix towered over his opponents, awaiting a command from his Trainer, which he promptly gave.

"Bind."

I sat forward when, with astounding speed, the mammoth rock snake dashed forward, aiming to imprison the little electric mouse. Pikachu proved to be a lot faster, though, when she zipped away at Karen's command.

"Iron Tail!"

Pikachu swerved, her tail metallic just like before, and hit with full force on Onix's head. She actually hit the huge Pokemon so hard that his head slammed down onto the ground, kicking up dust. Pikachu dashed away to put some distance between themselves even as the gargantuan Rock-type rose, seemingly unaffected by the attack.

"How...?" Karen was astonished.

"Onix is sturdy. You'll have to do a lot better than that to defeat us."

"Onix may be strong, but we have speed on our side. Right, Pikachu?" Pikachu cheered in agreement.

Karen once again had Pikachu run circles around the enormous Onix, in hopes of making him dizzy just like with Geodude. As the battle wore on, however, that didn't seem to be the case. Onix never got dizzy, never teetered, never so much as flinched at Pikachu's speed. Pikachu, on the other hand, was quickly tiring, and every attack Onix sent her way came closer and closer to hitting its mark.

Karen bit her lip, and I could practically see the gears turning in her head. She would have to think of a new strategy. As I watched, she brightened as if she had and idea then cried, "Pikachu, get back here!"

Pikachu complied and stood in front of Karen, panting heavily. Karen studied her for a few seconds, a worried look on her face, before saying, "You deserve rest." Pikachu, a little bewildered, but a little relieved, was returned to her Pokeball. Karen brought out another one and tossed it in. As she did so, I thought I heard her say, "Please let this work."

The Pokeball opened and out came Bulbasaur once again, with a look of fierce determination on her face despite the injuries she received earlier. Unbelievably, she didn't even flinch as she looked up at Onix.

"Razor Leaf!"

The leaves hit Onix head on and he recoiled, letting out a grunt of pain.

"Again!"

Once more leaves collided with Onix, sending him reeling back.

"Alright, Bulbasaur, go!"

The little Grass-type took off straight for Onix.

_What the hell is she thinking?_ I thought. Why would Karen have Bulbasaur rush Onix head-on like that? It was suicidal. Onix would destroy her before she could get in nearly enough damage to defeat him. But once again, I misread Karen's intentions. Once Bulbasaur was close enough she jumped on top of the Rock Snake Pokemon's segmented body and up the length of it, firing off Razor Leaf at Karen's command. The attack hit Onix in the face and he reeled back again, blindly lashing out. Bulbasaur managed to evade the attack, but it forced her to jump down to the ground.

She kept running circles around Onix, much like Pikachu had before, but she kept firing Razor Leaf whenever Onix got close enough to attack, repelling him. I wondered just how long Bulbasaur could keep this tactic up-her battle against Geodude must have taken a lot out of here, and here she was, sprinting to keep from getting crushed by Onix's attacks. I could see no way out of her predicament, and by the way Karen was biting her lip and clenching her fists, neither could she.

"Rock Throw."

Brock spoke the command at a normal volume, but it carried so much weight to it that I could hear it above the thrashing Onix. The Rock Pokemon reared back and brought his tail forward, slamming it down into the ground, creating a deep gash and sending a shower of rocks flying at Bulbasaur, much like what had happened with the Ghosts. She in turn put in an extra burst of speed to keep out of the way of the raining debris. For a moment, as the shower of debris lessened, it seemed Bulbasaur was in the clear. This was not the case as Onix started chasing after her. Now she had to split her focus in dodging the falling boulders and evading the mammoth Rock Pokemon.

It seemed as if it would be the end for her when a boulder crashed down right in front of her, she skidded to a halt, and Onix lashed out, encircling her with his craggy body in an instant, and started to squeeze.

I bolted upright and Karen screamed, "Bulbasaur! No!"

Bulbasaur was lost in the coils of the giant Rock Snake, the only sign of her was the occasional strangled cry as she tried her hardest to escape, but to no avail.

"Come on, Bulbasaur!" Karen cried, "You can do it!"

All she received was a final choked out cry. With one last squeezed, Onix unwound himself, and Bulbasaur fell to the ground, motionless. Karen immediately ran over to her and I jumped down to the bottom most seat. She kneeled by her starter and picked her up, cradling her in her arms. She sighed deeply in relief when she saw Bulbasaur was still breathing. Karen muttered some words to her unconscious Pokemon before recalling her into her Pokeball.

She kneeled there for some time before slowly standing and returning to her place opposite Brock on the battlefield. She was looking down, her white hat hiding her eyes. Finally, she looked up, a new fire of determination alight in them. She sent out Pikachu once again and shouted, "Iron Tail!"

Utilizing the same tactic as before, she zoomed away in slammed her steel-hard tail into the rock snake. Onix tried to counterattack but was too slow and Pikachu dodged almost effortlessly. She came around for another attack, then another, and another. However, despite all of the supposed super-effective hits on him, Onix didn't seem too fazed. I did notice, though, that every few moments, Onix would tremble a little, but it happened so fast that it seemed as if it didn't happen at all.

As the battle raged, and Pikachu kept up her hit-and-run strategy, the tremors in Onix increased in frequency and he seemed to be getting tired much faster than he should have. I just attributed it him weakening due to Pikachu's unrelenting assault.

Finally, after having been at it for the better part of fifteen minutes, Karen shouted, "Now, Pikachu! Go!"

Pikachu darted away and jumped onto Onix's body like Bulbasaur before her, but she succeeded where the Grass-type failed in that she managed to make it all the way up to Onix's head. Once there, she had to hold on to his horn for dear life as the Rock Pokemon began thrashing about, trying to shake her off. Then, when Onix thrashed his head upward, Pikachu let go and she flew up. She went up so high that she was able to bounce off of the Gym's ceiling and plummet back down, straight toward the oncoming Onix, tail metallic. She whirled and her tail impacted with Onix's head, sending him careening straight into the ground.

Pikachu landed expertly on his huge head and dashed away. Both she and everyone else watched Onix to see if he would get up. The rock snake slowly, but surely, rose until he towered once more over the battlefield. He glared down at the electric mouse, and she glared back, and Karen watched Onix anxiously.

Then, to everyone's surprised-even Brock broke his usual stony demeanor- Onix shuddered powerfully and he leaned forward, as if he were to fall. He straightened, but then was wracked with another shudder, then another, and another, until he finally collapsed in a rocky heap.

"Onix!" Brock shouted in concern.

He trotted over to his Pokemon's side and suddenly stopped, staring at his craggy side. He slowly walked to him and reached in between the rock segments that made up the Pokemon's body. He tugged on something as I jumped down to the floor and made my way over to Karen. We both looked over when he yanked his hand out, holding a small, oblong brown object.

"I knew it."

"What is it?" I asked,.

He tossed it over and I expertly caught it. I studied it for a moment before looking back at the Gym Leader.

"Leech Seed."

I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion, then my eye widened. I looked to Karen, and suddenly everything fell into place.

"When Onix used Bind on Bulbasaur, she must have used the opportunity to leave this in there," Brock explained, approaching after having returned his Pokemon. "That's why Onix kept trembling afterward."

So he noticed it, too. I looked to Karen, who smiled wearily. "Wow. Impressive."

"Impressive, indeed," Brock intoned. "In all my years of being a Gym Leader, I've never seen anyone turn my Pokemon's own attack against him like that. You're definitely deserving of this." He reached into his jeans pocket and pulled out a small, stone gray object. "By the official Pokemon League rules, I hereby bequeath onto you this Boulder Badge."

He held it out and Karen took it. She raised it to her face, then broke out into a hug grin. "I won a Boulder Badge!" She scooped up an exhausted Pikachu and twirled around in circles, laughing in excitement.

I watched her dance around, the corners of my mouth upturned in a smile, when Brock came up to me. "You'll have to wait a few days before challenging me, Jack. My Pokemon are injured and need to recover."

I nodded. "I can wait."

I turned to look at Karen, who was now showing her newly-obtained badge to her Pokemon, who cooed in wonder.

I was up next for my first Gym Battle.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Right now, since their Pokemon are rather weak and have a limited moveset, the battle's will be a little... lackluster. When Jack and Karen get more Pokemon and they become more powerful, the battles will be more intense.

Any thoughts on the battle? Was it good, was it short, boring, lacking description? Leave a review, would you kindly.


	7. Battle for the Boulder Badge part 2

**Chapter 7-Battle for the Boulder Badge part 2**

I sat on my bed in our room, studying my town map. I had discovered a new feature for it. Each of the metal ends had small but thick segments that extended to the other end and snapped into it, effectively keeping the map open in a way that I didn't need to hold it with both hands. I held the map in one hand, gently stroking Charmander as he dozed next to me with the other. It had taken Karen and I about a little more than a week to get from Pallet Town to Pewter City, but I saw that they weren't too far away on the map. Cerulean City, on the other hand, was more than twice the distance away. I estimated it would be some three weeks to get there. But then I took note of the towering Mt. Moon, and given the fact that I could just barely see it from the window in my room...

A month. I'd say a solid month to Cerulean City.

My eye twitched. "Holy crap."

The door opened and Karen and Bulbasaur walked in. She plopped down next to me, saying, "Watcha doin'?" Bulbasaur jumped up and lay next to Charmander.

"I have some news. I guess you could see it as bad."

"What is it?"

I faced her. "It might take us about a month to get to Cerulean City."

Karen stared at me, her eye twitched and she fell back onto the bed, her white hat sliding off her head. "Holy crap."

"My sentiments exactly," I muttered.

She sat back up, replacing her hat on her head. "Are you kidding me?"

"Do I look like I'm kidding?"

"You rarely do."

"And what does that mean?"

"You're always so serious."

"And what the hell's wrong with being serious?"

"Nothing." She snatched my hat from my head. "But too serious, now that's a problem."

"Hey!"

I jumped up and grabbed for my hat, and Karen danced away, giggling. I grabbed for it once more and she twirled away. Once more and I missed when she sidestepped.

_I'm a martial artist, how can I not get my hat back from Karen?_ I thought as I made another attempt, only for Karen to move out of the way again. This went on for several minutes.

Finally, I just dove and tackled her onto her bed. Karen cried out in surprise. We bounced several times, Karen and I both laughing. Charmander and Bulbasaur briefly glanced up at the commotion, and promptly lay their heads back down, sleep apparently more important than our antics. We gradually stopped moving after some time and only then did I notice that my arms were wrapped around her slim waist, and I held her close to me. We lay in that position for what seemed like an hour but was actually only a few seconds before I slowly unwrapped my arms and stood. I stooped to pick up my hat that had fallen from Karen's grasp and placed back upon my head. I moved to my bed and went back to studying my map, raising it up high and lowering my head, allowing the bill of my cap to shadow my face in an attempt hide my furious blush.

"Jack? Are you okay?"

Silence reigned for a few moments. There was the rustling of clothes and then the map was pushed down, revealing the red prevalent on my face. "Why is your face red?"

"It's not red," I lied.

"Yes it is." She poked me to indicate where. "Right there. Are you...blushing?" she asked hesitantly, scarcely believing I, of all people, would blush.

"Blushing is not in my vocabulary."

"Okay, now you're just being ridiculous. Then why is it red?"

"I don't know. Maybe I'm coming down with a cold, or something," I said weakly.

"Better hope not. Otherwise you can't challenge Brock."

That got me. "Might as well go now," I said, changing the subject. I put away my town map and returned Charmander to his Pokeball, and Karen Bulbsaur. I had been three days since Karen defeated Brock and won her first badge, the Boulder Badge. I figured that was enough time to allow Brock's Pokemon to heal.

Thirty minutes later, we arrived at the stone-gray Gym and stepped inside.

We stopped and stared. Just like before, the interior was unblemished, the damage done to it long since fixed. This time, however, the layout of the battlefield was completely different than the last time we were here. Three days ago, it had been a completely flat dirt arena. Now, though, it was wrought with rock spike sticking up out of the ground, their points reaching for the sky. Some of the tops were rather rounded out, but I couldn't help but notice the ones with wicked points.

I shared an uncertain glance with Karen. "What the hell?"

She was also troubled by the drastic change in the arena. "Maybe Brock can explain." She took a step forward. "Hello?" Karen called. "Anyone here?"

Shortly afterward, someone came forward from the back of the Gym. Brock stopped short of the battle arena, expression as stony as ever, and said, "Here to challenge me now?"

I nodded, my expression equally as stony, save for a small scowl. "Before we start, what's with the stalagmites?"

Brock chuckled. "Oh, this? It's just something I decided to implement into the Gym some time ago. A flat arena is optimal for a straight-forward battle, but the stalagmites give a chance for a deeper battle, allowing for both combatants to adjust their strategies accordingly, sometimes on the fly, or to outright develop new ones."

_Makes sense, I guess._

"So how do you decide when to change the field?" Karen inquired.

Brock shrugged. "I flip a coin."

"Not quite what I expected," I muttered.

Karen gave my hand a quick squeeze and a reassuring smile before taking a seat on the bleachers.

"Whenever you're ready," Brock intoned.

I took a breath, steeling myself for the upcoming battle. I knew that Karen's victory over the renowned Gym Leader was due as much to luck as it was to an innate talent she had. I knew that I might not be so lucky. I could very well end up losing this battle, could wind up being crushed and all my Pokemon heavily injured. Which was now made all the more likely due to the unprecedented alteration to the arena. Those sharp stalagmites could do some serious damage. I forced those thoughts out of my head and tried to tell myself that it would be alright. I found it difficult to believe it. I glanced at Karen. She gave me a smile and I gave one in return, before I took my place at my end of the arena. Brock nodded and tossed out a Pokeball. It snapped open and sent out the Pokemon within.

Onix reared up to his full height of twenty feet, the end of his tail twisting around a stalagmite taller than me.

_So he's starting out strong...Guess I'll have to, as well._

I sent out my first Pokemon, and in the second after he appeared at my feet, he sparkled. It was unmistakable. His golden-hued fur literally sparkled, just like it had on Route 22 during my battle against Gary. That couldn't have been a coincidence. But I just shrugged it off as a trick of the light.

Brock was staring at my Pokemon, and I took advantage of his shock at seeing a shiny Pokemon.

"Alright, Rattata, get on him!"

Rattata shot off in a golden blur and scampered up the length of Onix.

"Damn it! Shake him off!" Brock commanded, shaking off his initial shock at seeing a shiny Pokemon.

Rattata succeeded where Bulbasaur had failed, in that he managed to make it all the way to Onix's head. He didn't have much time to do anything else, though, as Onix began to flail about in an attempt to shake Rattata off, forcing him to hang on to the rock snake's horn for dear life.

After several long moments in which I wracked my brain, searching for a solution to Rattata's predicament, Brock gave another order.

"Ram him!"

Onix stopped his thrashing and immediately complied. He lowered his head and dove for a stalagmite, aiming to crush Rattata between himself and the rock.

"Get away!" I shouted in panic.

The golden Mouse Pokemon managed to jump away a split-second before Onix crashed head first into the spike, demolishing it and reducing it to dust. Rattata landed easily on a flat-topped stalagmite, waiting for my next command as Onix rose. The rock snake lunged for him again and without my telling him he leaped over his head and onto another rock column. He wasn't able to evade the next attack, though. Onix's tail swung around and impacted into the stalagmite Rattata was perched upon. The rock shattered into countless pieces and Rattata was sent flying with a cry of pain clear to the other end of the Gym. He hit the wall and fell to the ground amid a pile of rubble, his golden body quickly obscured from view.

"Rattata!"

My fears were quelled when the rubble shifted and out crawled my little Pokemon. I let out a breath of relief. My relief evaporated into panic when Onix lunged once more.

"Move!" I shouted.

Rattata, bloodied and bruised, dashed away right before Onix could hit him. The rock snake ended up crashing into the ground where the golden Mouse Pokemon had been only a moment before. The collision kicked up dust and shook the ground, but Onix didn't seem fazed when he reared up.

"Bind!"

"Don't let him get you, Rattata!"

Rattata took off, Onix in hot pursuit. The golden mouse was able to duck and weave between the obstacles in the arena, whereas Onix simply crushed them to get by. This slowed the rock snake down, allowing Rattata to stay out of the Rock-type's reach. But then Onix put forth a burst of speed and was suddenly right behind Rattata, barreling toward him at a rate that would soon have the Rock Pokemon overtake him. The sight of this suddenly caused my mind to flash back on a memory: my battle with Gary on Route 22, and how Rattata had gotten me the win.

"Jump!"

As if he knew what I was thinking, Rattata jumped, bounded off a spike, and soared toward the oncoming Rock Pokemon. Once close enough, Rattata chomped down onto Onix's nostril with his huge incisors. Onix roared in pain and reared up. He once again began to flail his head, trying to shake Rattata off. Rattata was able to keep his grip for a short while before falling off and landing easily on a rock.

Onix struck at Rattata, destroying the stalagmite that he had been perched on as he jumped to another one. This one was also promptly destroyed by the Rock-type, then the next. And the next. And the next. Soon, the floor in some areas between the spikes was completely covered by the rubble.

Then Rattata's attempts to keep away were brought to a halt.

As he landed on yet another rocky pillar, Onix brought his tail up in preparation to bring down on Rattata. The tail plummeted and Rattata leaped off onto the ground. Onix's tail made impact with such incredible force this time that I had to fight to keep my balance as the ground trembled. Even Karen felt it from her seat up on the bleachers. Brock, however, didn't seem affected, not even remotely.

But Rattata, he was severely affected. He landed on a particularly large chunk of loose rock, and when the enormous Rock-type pounded the ground, his tail caught the edge of it. The rock, with Rattata on top, went flying straight towards Onix's huge head. Seeing the opportunity, Onix swung his enormous head, colliding with the small figure of Rattata with enormous force.

I watched in horror as he was sent hurtling through the air.

He hit a stalagmite so hard I winced and he bounced off, rolling to a stop at my feet. I immediately fell to my knees and picked him up in my arms. Rattata was bloodied, bruised...and unconscious. I sighed in relief-at least he was still alive, after that last hit. I wiped off some blood that was trickling from his mouth. "You did great, Rattata," I said softly. I returned him to his Pokeball and clipped it back onto my belt. I grit my teeth. I knew this was going to happen. I knew one of my Pokemon would be gravely injured.

I reached for my belt and hesitated. I only had two Pokemon left, Charmander and Pikachu, Fire- and Electric-types, respectively. They weren't going to fare well against Onix, who was a dual Rock-and Ground-type. Onix would be resistant to any of their attack, and Charmander and Pikachu could very well end up like Rattata.

I should just forfeit right now...

_No. I'm not going to forfeit just because one of my Pokemon was defeated. I'm sure Rattata would want me to keep going, to push on_.

I took a breath, the sent out my next Pokemon. Pikachu looked up at Onix and recoiled a little. He looked back at me, our eyes met, and I felt what he was thinking. _You really think I can beat him?_

I wasn't sure he could, but I nodded anyway, not wanting my concerns to impede Pikachu as he battled. He nodded back and smiled confidently before turning to face Onix.

"Onix, Bind!"

"Quick Attack!"

Onix lunged and Pikachu dashed out of the way, weaving between stalagmites, Onix in pursuit. As Pikachu ran between the pyres of rock that were subsequently destroyed, I could see he was beginning to panic. I fully understood why. The only attacks that Pikachu knew-Quick Attack and Thundershock-would do little to no damage at all. And besides, even if they did enough damage, Onix would have just shaken it off and kept coming.

Despite my hopes, despite my wishes that he would be alright, Pikachu didn't last too long. As he ran from Onix, he twisted his head back and a small bolt of electricity shot from his cheeks toward Onix. As I was expecting, it didn't faze him on bit. The Thundershock hit Onix head on and simply dissipated, no damage done at all. Pikachu turned his head back, just in time to collide with a rock. He bounced off and Onix quickly struck. His tail swung around and crashed into Pikachu and sent him airborne my way. Pikachu landed at my feet, bleeding from a few cuts.

I stared down at Pikachu, not wanting to accept that he was already so injured, in not even a minute. He stirred and I scooped him up in my arms.

"Pi..." I didn't need to be a Pokemon to understand what he said. _I'm sorry._

"No, don't be. You did your best. It's all on me." I returned my injured partner to his Pokeball and took Charmander's into my hand. I rolled his Pokeball in my hand, debating whether I should just give up right now. I shook my head and with a cry of frustration sent out my starter to face the towering Onix.

Charmander and Onix stared each other down, waiting for the other to make a move. Finally, Onix lunged at lightning speed. Charmander was able to evade his attack, though, by jumping high into the air and over the rock snake's head. Without me having to tell him to, Charmander aimed a Metal Claw at Onix's head, swiping across his scalp and chipping away a bit of rock. Charmander landed back on the floor strewn with rubble from decimated stalagmites and hopped away. Onix twisted around and lunged, but Charmander fired Ember towards his eyes at my command. Onix close them a split-second before the Fire attack hit, doing little damage, but Onix recoiled, giving Charmander enough time to close in on him.

"Metal Claw!"

Charmander swiped repeatedly at the rock snake's hide with steel-hard claws, chipping away some of his stone body. Onix flicked his tail at my Pokemon, who then hopped on top. Charmander sprinted up the length of his tail for a few yards before leaping and digging his metallic claws into Onix's side. He slid down and around the rock snake's side, leaving deep gouges in the stone that made up his body. Charmander let go and fell back to the ground.

"Fire!" I shouted.

Charmander shot Ember into the gouges in Onix's body, and got a significant reaction from him: the Rock-type bellowed in obvious pain. My eyes widened, and Karen looked equally as surprised. _If I could keep doing that, then maybe, just maybe, I can beat Brock._

"Again, Charmander!"

The little Flame Pokemon dodged and incoming swipe and fired once more, eliciting another roar of pain. Again, but this time, I didn't get another chance to tell Charmander to fire because Onix's throes of pain sent his tail whipping around. Before either of us could react, it crashed into Charmander, sending him soaring back towards my end of the field. He crashed right into me, knocking the breath from my lungs and sending me to the ground.

"Jack!" Karen shouted.

I shook my head to clear my vision and took a shaky breath before looking at Charmander, splayed across my chest. I bolted upright and cradled him in my arms. He was still conscious, and lucid enough to look up at me. He gave a soft, apologetic growl and tried to squirm out of my arms. _He still wants to battle. _I held him tighter as he continued his attempts to return to the battle.

"No, Charmander," I whispered, "You're too injured."

He stared at me for a moment, then gave in, collapsing in my arms. His breathing gradually slowed from its accelerated rate until he was unconscious. I watched him, chest gently rising and falling, before standing. Karen called out to me, but I didn't hear her words. All my mind, my conscience, clung to was that all of my Pokemon were so injured, that they were all defeated quickly and I couldn't even get past Brock's first Pokemon. I hung my head

_ Shows how great a Trainer I am..._

My very first Gym battle, and... and...

I lost.

* * *

Nurse Joy exited the emergency room in which Jack's Pokemon had been carted in to, and Karen hurried up to her.

"How are they?" she asked anxiously, biting her lip.

"They're fine," the nurse responded. "All they need now is rest."

Karen sighed in relief. "That's good. Um, are they well enough for me to take them?"

Joy thought it over. "Well, yes. But you'll have to be gentle with them. No battling for at least three days."

Karen nodded.

Joy went back through the double doors and came back shortly after holding a tray with six circular depressions in them, three of them occupied by Pokeballs. "Where's their Trainer?" she asked as she handed them to Karen.

"He left an hour ago. I'll get them to him."

"Oh, okay. Be careful with them."

Karen nodded again.

After Jack's defeat at the hands of Brock's Onix, he had just stood there, holding Charmander. His head was lowered, and his cap had cast shadows over his face. She couldn't see much, but she thought she had caught the glimmer of moisture. Without a word, Jack had simply turned and left the Gym. Karen followed after him, but he was already gone among the throngs of people by the time she stepped out of the Gym.

When she had finally arrived at the Pokemon Center, she found Jack sitting at a bench near to the emergency room. Even from here, she could feel the guilt emanating from him. Karen had approached Jack, feeling like she should do something to cheer him up, to get his mind off of his loss at the Gym, but when she spoke to him, all she got in response were short, clipped answers. Karen finally stopped trying, and Jack took that as his cue. He stood and left the Center for places unknown.

"Jack..." Karen whispered. She took the three Pokeballs entrusted to her by Nurse Joy and sent out the Pokemon within. Charmander, Pikachu, and Rattata looked up at her in confusion, then cast about for their Trainer. Charmander had a bandage wrapped around his torso, the only one of the three with them, but otherwise didn't look too bad.

"Jack's not here," she said sadly. They gave her inquisitive looks. Jack's Pikachu hopped onto her shoulder.

"Pika?"

Karen shook her head, long brown hair waving to and fro. "I don't know where he is."

Pikachu's ears drooped, and he hopped back down next to his comrades.

"How about we go find him?"

They nodded and Karen left the Center, Jack's Pokemon in tow.

* * *

The moon's pale light splashed across the grassy hill, giving it a ethereal appearance. The celestial object's ghostly illumination cast shadows through the landscape, shadows that danced as the wind whistled through the trees, gently shaking them back and forth. The grass and bushes rustled at the breeze's liking. The eerie call of some Pokemon came together with the moon's light to turn the hill into an otherworldly location, one that could be frequented by the spirits of the damned.

_Funny how a crushing defeat can make you wax poetic._

I sighed and gazed up at the three-quarters moon. All I could think about at that moment was how bad I screwed up my Gym battle. My Pokemon were so hurt... Another breeze blew through, and I had to hold on to the branch I was perched on to keep from falling. I readjusted my hat, then turned my head at the soft sound of footsteps brushing along the grass. I raised an eyebrow.

Karen strolled up to my tree, Charmander, Pikachu, and Rattata at her feet.

"Jack?" She looked up at me, twenty feet above the ground. I got a sudden sense of dejá vu.

I stared into her soft brown eyes, which were filled with compassion and comfort, before returning my gaze to the sky.

"Jack?" she repeated.

I looked back at her, and my eyes fell to Charmander. His bandages brought up the guilt from within, which I had managed to suppress, but the look in his eyes seemed to convey that he didn't blame me, not at all. I slid off my branch and fell to a lower one, then to another, then to the ground. I turned from them and sat on a stump, head down.

"I'm sorry. Because of me, you were hurt."

Karen approached and place a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Don't blame yourself, Jack. It's not your fault."

"Yes it is," I said, turning my head to her. "It's _all _my fault!" Karen flinched back, my answer having come back harsher than intended. "I'm sorry."

There was silence between us, the only sound the breeze and it blew past us and down the hill. Suddenly, Karen's arms encircled me from behind. She lay her head against my back and I tensed, but then relaxed.

The embrace said more than words could have ever conveyed.

We were motionless in this position, like statues, before she said, "You shouldn't blame yourself. You should never blame yourself. Your Pokemon all worked hard in the battle. Brock simply proved a powerful Trainer. But you can be powerful, too. You know what they say, 'when you fall, you get right back on the Ponyta'. You just have to do some training, Jack, and I'm sure you can beat Brock."

My Pokemon came around in front of me, smiling reassuringly.

I nodded. "You're right, Karen. Thank you."

She lingered in the embrace for a few seconds before letting go. The breeze suddenly felt chillier without the body warmth provided by her embrace.

As I sat there, wracking my brain for different ways to defeat Brock, my eyes drifted to my Pokemon, then to their tails. I perked up when an idea came to mind.

"Hey, Karen..."

"Yeah?" She sat next to me on the stump.

"Think your Pikachu can teach my Pokemon something?"

She cocked her head. "Teach them what?"

"Iron Tail."


	8. Battle for the Boulder Badge part 3

**Chapter 8-Battle for the Boulder Badge part 3**

Merry Christmas, FFNet-ers! I'm sorry it took two months for me to update this damn thing. My must is a fickle bitch, with a very short attention span. If this chapter's a little underwhelming and there's a wealth of errors, you'll have to forgive me. At the time I write this, it is 2:32 AM on Christmas Day, my parents and grandpa are wasted and making a racket that I'm sure the neighbors are bound to get sick of and call the police. But anyway, here's chapter eight.

Oh, and thank you to my new reviewer Foonator, and the ever diligent reviewer Cantarella of Odile. Keep dropping them reviews, guys.

* * *

"Try it again, Charmander."

Charmander nodded, panting. He charged the splintered tree yet again, and his tail became steel-hard and took on the composition of metal. He whirled when he reached the tree, but the metallic sheen to his tail vanished right before he could make contact with the bark. Charmander growled in frustration then sagged in defeat.

"Damn it," I muttered as he trudged back to me.

It had been about a week since my loss to Brock, eight days to be exact. When I had asked Karen whether her Pikachu would teach my Pokemon Iron Tail, she had brought her out of her Pokeball. Her Pikachu had readily agreed, and we started our training right away.

I didn't need Karen to tell me about Nurse Joy's warning to know that I couldn't push them too hard, lest they worsen their conditions.

I started them off with something simple, nothing to taxing. After Pikachu had spoken to them in their shared Pokemon language, instructing them on how to change the density of their tails to use Iron Tail, I had them simply stand in place and concentrate on

At first, it was difficult for them. Whenever they tried it, it would only hold for a few seconds at most before flickering on and off, and vanishing entirely. But, as time went on and they kept at it, they were able to hold it for longer and longer amounts of time. Eventually, they could hold it indefinitely.

Except for Charmander.

From the very beginning, he had the most difficulty out of the three.

Whenever Rattata and Pikachu could hold the move for a couple seconds, Charmander couldn't even activitate it. This had me extremely worried. Could he be so injured that it was preventing him from executing the move properly?

As it turned out, my concerns were unfounded. After a couple of days, Charmander was beginning to perfect it. Somewhat. He could sustain the move for far longer than he could, and soon, he was on par with Rattata and Pikachu.

Then we moved on to walking around with Iron Tail activated, and Charmander began to falter again. He could use Iron Tail perfectly fine, as long as he stood still. When he took a step, though, it began to flicker, and a few more steps and it would vanish completely. It seemed that activating the move and walking at once was too much. Rattata and Pikachu were able to master it rather quickly, in about two days, and by that Charmander was still having trouble with Iron Tail.

I began to get a little impatient with how long our training was taking, I wanted to battle Brock again as soon as we could. So, even with Charmander struggling as much as he was, I decided to move on to our next exercise. Behind the Pokemon Center was a small arena for any battles Trainers might want to have. At the edge of it was a copse of trees. I had my Pokemon focus on a single one and attack it with Iron Tail. I started with Rattata, and he was able to do it well and consistently enough that I moved on to Pikachu, who performed just as well, if not better. Then I began with Charmander, and as I had come to expect, he couldn't get it right. He had been able to keep Iron Tail up for a while now, even while running, but more often than not, it would fade away before he could use it against the totaled tree. As time went on, he hit it successfully more and more often, but it still wasn't consistent enough to be relied on in a battle.

"I think that's enough for today, Charmander."

He nodded gratefully and promptly collapsed.

"How's he doing?"

I turned to Karen, who had come to stand beside me.

"He's getting better. A few more days and we should be able to face Brock. Right, Charmander?" I asked him encouragingly.

He only lifted a small arm in response and let it fall back down at his side.

My now-customary small scowl melted away, and I smiled, which Karen was not one to miss.

"Oh, is that a smile? Is Jack really smiling?" Karen teased, giggling.

"No, shut up."

"Oh, Jack, there's no need to be so mean," she pouted.

I chuckled at the sight of her cute puffed out cheeks-_Damn __it! Stop thinking like that!_-before going to pick up my starter. "Let's get you rested up."

Charmander sighed and turned in my arms, nodding off in moments. I handed him to Nurse Joy and Karen and I went into our room to plan our course for our travel to Cerulean City.

* * *

"Is it really going to take a month to get there?" Karen asked, seated next to me on my bed as we studied the town map once again, trying to gauge the distance to see whether my first guess was off. "A _month_?"

I said nothing for a moment, looking over the map, using the scale to determine the distance. Finally, I said, "Pretty much, yeah."

She let out a disbelieving sigh and leaned against me. "A _month_ to get to Cerulean City. Why does it have to be so long?"

Her contact caused me feel a little warmer, and a tad uncomfortable, so I responded with a shrug and a simple, "Who knows."

"Come on, Jack, hurry up and beat Brock already so we can move on!"

"I don't want to push my Pokemon too much in their training. Charmander hasn't mastered Iron Tail yet. I don't want to send him into battle until he does, or as close as he can. He could get hurt even more if I get too impatient."

Karen studied me, and it made me a little more uncomfortable, so I tried to make myself busy and put my town map away

"I'm sorry."

I raised an eyebrow. "For what?"

"Here I am, raring to go to Cerulean City, not even considering your Pokemon's condition." She looked down at her hands in her lap.

"It's okay, Karen," I consoled her, patting her shoulder.

She smiled and I smiled back.

"There's that smile again!"

My expression swiftly reverted to my usual scowl. "What smile?"

"The one you just had. Why do you have to be so serious, Jack? Lighten up a little!" She playfully pushed me.

I opened my mouth to say that I was fine the way I was when a sharp growl cut through the air. I glanced down at my stomach. "Huh, would you look at that."

"Hungry?"

"Apparently," I answered, placing a hand over my stomach as a hunger pang gripped me.

"Oh, that's right!" Karen exclaimed. "You've been training with Charmander so hard that you haven't had a chance to eat anything!" She glanced at the wall clock. "It's already three o'clock!"

"So it is."

She grabbed my hand and hauled me to my feet with a strength I wouldn't have attributed to her slight frame. "Come on, mister, we're getting you some food."

She dragged me behind her as she ran out of the room.

"Really, Karen, I can get there myself."

My protests were ignored as she dashed to the cafeteria, towing me along, keeping a tight grip on my hand the whole way. She finally stopped and said to the cafeteria lady, "Quick, get this boy a cheeseburger, fries, and a milkshake! Oh, and one for me, too."

She eyed Karen curiously, then set about to prepare the meal.

"I cold have done that myself, you know." I pulled my hand out of hers.

"I know. But you probably would have just gone back to training as soon as possible and ignore your hunger." She flicked my nose with a giggle. "Can't have you dying of starvation on me, Jack."

I chuckled and sat with her at a booth. Shortly after, a waitress came with our orders. The heavenly scent of the burger and fries wafted into my nostrils, and before I knew it, I was already scarfing my meal down. I glanced up at Karen and damn near choked. She was already done with hers. I stared at her incredulously and she only giggled.

"I was hungry."

I washed my food down with the milkshake and leaned back, my hunger sated.  
"That was damn good."

"Sure was," Karen agreed.

We stared at each other for a second before we burst into laughter.

"What was so funny?" Karen questioned after our laughter died down.

"I have no idea."

* * *

Three days later, Karen stepped out of the Pokemon Center and stretched as the sun's brilliant rays washed over her. She sighed contentedly at the beautiful weather.

"Not a cloud in the sky!"

Words she couldn't quite make out and the sound of a loud crack drifted to her ears. Curious, but confident she already knew what it was, she rounded the corner and headed for the battle arena behind the Center. She stopped at the corner as Jack commanded Charmander to do what he had been doing for the last five days-attack the same tree with Iron Tail.

She had to admire his dedication. Jack's commitment to training his Charmander to perfect Iron Tail was admirable, to say the least. She had never been able to commit to, well, anything, really, with such passion. She envied him in that regard.

Smiling, she leaned against the building and watched.

* * *

Three days passed, each one occupied with little else beyond training for my rematch. In those three days, I saw Charmander's performance with Iron Tail drastically improve. He was even keeping up with Rattata and Pikachu. Out of the approximately one hundred and four times that he attacked the demolished tree behind the Pokemon Center, he failed only six times, and was doing better.

"You're getting the hang of this Charmander. Let's try again."

He nodded, his expression one of elation at his progress, and he charged the tree for umpteenth time that day. As usual, his tail adopted a metallic sheen and he whirled, impacting with a sharp crack against the bark. Charmander jumped back and watched, in awe, as the ten foot tall tree splintered at its base and fell. The mighty boom caused by its collapse sent any nearby Pokemon scurrying away. Rattata and Pikachu, who had been spectators to our training, began to cheer for the little Fire-type. Charmander ran back to me, absolutely ecstatic, and I kneeled to meet him. I scooped him up and he clambered up onto my shoulder, followed by Rattata and Pikachu. I had stood up and was off-balance, and the sudden extra weight of my Pokemon sent me sprawling to the ground, and they tumbled off.

Laughing, I sat up and brushed some dirt off. "Well, I think we're ready to challenge Brock again. What do you guys say?"

The pounced on me again, which I took as a yes.

"Tomorrow it is, then. But first, let's get you rested."

* * *

The next day, Karen accompanied me to the Gym to watch my rematch. The sun was shining brightly, the wind a gentle breeze as it swept through the Pewter City. It was beautiful weather, more so than the day before. It was almost as if it were a sign of my impending battle.

We stepped through the now-familiar doorway. Brock was already standing at his end of the arena, waiting. How he knew today was the day I came to battle him once again is beyond me. Karen uttered a quick, "Good luck" before taking a seat on the bleachers.

"Good to see you again, Jack."

I nodded in greeting and stepped onto my spot and took a deep breath and let it slide through my nose. Brock waited. On the way here, I was feeling incredibly confident about the battle, sure that with all the training I did with my Pokemon, there was no way we could lose. But, now that I was actually here, mere moments away from actually battling Brock again... my confidence suddenly just evaporated. In its stead was a knot in the pit of my stomach and slight nausea. What if I lost again and Charmander was left with worse injuries than almost two weeks ago now? I was starting to regret coming back here. _I'm going to lose, I just know it. I should just turn around and..._

_ No. Stop worrying about this, Jack. You can beat him. It's all you've been training for this entire week._

I shook my head to dispel any pessimistic thoughts and tapped the side of my head with the heel of my palm. I looked up and locked eyes with the Gym Leader. I nodded. He nodded back. We drew our Pokeballs.

The battle commenced.

* * *

"What a beautiful day."

Miranda took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. She lay on a grassy knoll, basking in the sun, not too far from her campsite off the beaten path of Route 3, where there was still grass before the land turned rocky and rugged.

As she rested, eyes closed, the sun splashing its wondrous light over her, her mind returned to the question that had come up more and more often these past few day: what had possessed her to save Jack and Karen from that asshole Bug Catcher in Viridian Forest...how long ago was it? A week? Two, two weeks.

_My, time sure does fly._

She had only met them the day before, and she was already putting her neck out to protect them? She really needed to get her priorities straight, if she wanted to accomplish her objective. Starting with going back to camp and cleaning up the mess from a battle she had with some pathetically weak Bug Catcher-he only had a Butterfree and a Weedle, for crying out loud!

Miranda sighed in contentment.

A slight rustle from above.

Her bright lime green eyes snapped open and she rolled to the side, just as a green shape plummeted and its arm embedded itself into the soft ground. Miranda jumped up as her Scyther yanked his blade arm out. The Mantis Pokemon swiped at her with a horizontal sweep of his blades and she backflipped over them. She landed on her feet and promptly spread them, lowering her center of gravity, hands up, going into her customary battle stance. Scyther went for a vertical slash downward and she whirled, lifted her leg up high and brought it down on his blade, shoving it into the grass, all in one fluid move. Then she brought up the other one and kicked at Scyther. He flinched back, but she stopped her foot right before it could make contact with his carapace. She stood like that, balancing on the thin edge of Scyther's blade arm, leg outstretched, before she brought it back and took a step back.

With a laugh that one would normally laugh when one is having a good time, she said, "That was great, Scyther. But I think you and I both know that's the closest you'll get to getting me."

She patted his shoulder and he hung his head, and promptly brought it back up. Miranda plopped back down onto the grass and the Bug-type sat next to her.

"It's beautiful today, isn't it Scyther?"

The ever-so-stoic Pokemon simply nodded and closed his eyes, no doubt enjoying the warmth of the sun.

Miranda watched as a single, puffy white cloud lazily drifted through the otherwise untarnished cerulean sky. A gentle breeze blew through. As it did, it brought with it a question-if Jack and Karen were to come across her as she camped on this Route, how would she explain to them why she wasn't in Saffron with her sick mother? She wasn't planning on staying her very long, but on the off chance that they did meet up, she would need to have some story ready to tell them. For the next ten minutes, she wracked her brain, trying to think of a suitable excuse. As she did, it slowly became harder and harder to keep her eyes open. She closed them momentarily, but despite her efforts to stay awake, within a minute, she had drifted to sleep under the light of the mid-morning sun.

She awoke some time later, when the sun had traveled a little further on its path in the sky. Her eyes fluttered open. She rubbed them and sat up. She stretched and gave a large yawn. She glanced around.

"Where'd Scyther go?"

She stood and stretched once more and stifled another yawn. The hairs on the back of her neck suddenly stood up, and a chill went down her spine. She felt something, the same feeling she had had over the last four days-the distinct feeling of being watched. She didn't even bother looking around. She already had a good idea of who it was. In fact, she had caught a flash of yellow and black the day before, which only served to support her suspicion. With a smirk, Miranda turned and headed for her campsite.

She would wait. Her watcher would make a mistake and reveal himself. Then, she would strike, with unrelenting force.

When she reached the edge of the clearing where campsite was located, she looked it over. Her tent and fire pit were intact, but strewn all over the ground were bit and pieces of foliage, and more than a few uprooted saplings. Blocking the entrance to her tent was a fallen tree, which had narrowly avoided crushing it.

She sighed. "This is gonna take a while." Her Scyther suddenly appeared next to her. "Scyther, could you help clean up?"

The Bug Pokemon nodded and set about picking up what he could with his blade arms.

Another chill ran up Miranda's spine, but this one was familiar. Without looking, she struck her hand out behind her, fingers straight. It passed through a particularly cold patch of air, and she heard a soft laugh. She turned to face her Haunter as his form solidified.

"Where've you been?"

He replied with another breathy laugh.

"Would you be a dear and help clean up?"

Her Haunter had the capability of making vocalizations that sounded suspiciously like human speech. He let out a noise that sounded like, "Yes," as he drifted over to assist Scyther, his disembodied hands spinning about his ethereal body.

As they worked, Miranda took a Pokeball from her belt and studied it for a moment. Inside was a Pokemon she had just recently acquired. She had yet to familiarize herself with him. She let the Pokemon out, and as was expected form his species, he shrank back when she crouched to meet him at eye level (or tried to, the Pokemon was only a foot tall). She would need to be gentle with him.

"Hey, little guy. I'm your new Trainer."

The little Pokemon relaxed at her tone and came just slightly closer. Miranda extended a hand and he sniffed it. He let out a squeak of approval and came closer, nuzzling her hand. She picked him up with hardly any resistance and was surprised at how warm he was. Then again, he was a Fire-type, it was expected that he be warm.

Soon, the scattered foliage was gone, leaving only the fallen tree. That was easily taken care of, though. Scyther's blade sliced through it like butter, cutting into halves, which Haunter used Psychic to pick up. He floated over to the forest and set them down before returning to Miranda.

"Hey guys, say hello to your new teammate."

Haunter and Scyther came closer to the little Fire-type in her arms, and he immediately squeaked in terror and shrank into her arms.

"Hey, hey, it's okay. These are your teammates. They won't hurt you? Will you," she asked of them.

They nodded and the small Fire-type slowly brought his head out form her arms.

"You see?" she said gently to him. "It's alright. No one's gonna hurt you."

The Pokemon relaxed and squeaked up at her. She smiled, her bright green eyes shining. She returned Scyther and Haunter to their Pokeballs and sat on a log by the fire pit with the Pokemon in her arms, petting him as he fell asleep.

* * *

Onix roared as Rattata ran circles around him, weaving between and around the stalagmites that dotted the arena. The rock snake brought his tail up to slam it down, but he missed and Rattata jumped onto it. Like before, he ran up Onix's body.

"Iron Tail!"

Rattata leaped into the air and slammed his steel-hard tail on Onix's rocky head. The Rock-type cried out in pain and the Mouse Pokemon jumped back down to the ground and scurried over to me. Onix reared back up to face Rattata. The two of them were panting, and I myself was breathing hard.

Brock, though, seemed hardly affected. All he had done was change his posture from relaxed to tense.

"Finish him, Rattata!"

"Rock Throw!"

Rattata dashed away as Onix swiped his tail though the ground, kicking up a shower of rocks. Rattata jumped and kicked off one, then another, and another, getting closer to Onix.

Then, Rattata split into two, then four, then eight. There were now eight golden Rattata jumping from falling boulder to boulder. I jerked and realized just as Karen shouted it out.

"Rattata learned Double Team!"

The eight Rattata fell back to the ground and began to dash around Onix. All anyone could see of them were a series of golden blurs that soon melded together to seem like a single circle, undulating back and forth. Onix was thoroughly confused, not able to make out a single Rattata, let alone attack one. Only at Brock's command did he move. He slammed his tail down in the path of the blurs, but if he hit anything, it didn't show, as the single blur kept on going. Onix kept attacking them, not landing a single blow. When he began to show signs of fatigue, an object shot away from the circle and dashed up Onix. The other Rattata disappeared and the real one and performed the same maneuver as before-he jumped high into the air and used Iron Tail on the same spot on the Rock Pokemon's head.

The reaction was instantaneous.

Onix, with a roar of pain, collapsed in a plume of dust and Rattata wearily hopped down to the ground, panting.

Onix was unconscious.

"Alright, Jack!" Karen cheered from her seat. She had brought out her Pokemon, and they, too, were cheering.

Rattata slowly padded over to me, clearly exhausted. I kneeled down. "That was great, Rattata. You were able to take down something that huge by yourself. But I can't let you continue battling when you're so tired. Have some rest, you deserve it." I recalled him to his Pokeball, as did Brock with Onix. We plucked another Pokeball from our belts and tossed them out onto the field. Thy snapped open and out came our Pokemon.

"Geodude, Rollout!"

"Iron Tail!"

Geodude curled himself up into a ball and rolled forward at high speed toward Charmander, whose tail was now prepped to attack. Once the Rock Pokemon was close enough, Charmander whirled and slammed his tail into him. The force of the impact sent Geodude veering off course and he crashed into a spike and bounced away. Then he bounced off another one, and another one, and another one. Within seconds, the Rock-type was a pinball, rebounding off the stalagmites, even cracking a few. He was going to fast for Charmander to hit, so I had him wait until the opposing Pokemon was on a head-on collision course with him.

It didn't take long.

Geodude, still curled up and apparently too dizzy to do anything about it, bounced off a rock and went straight for Charmander. He prepared Iron Tail and struck with as much strength as he could muster just before collision. Geodude was sent rocketing backward and demolished a stalagmite to bits. The dust that was kicked up settled and Geodude was sprawled on the ground. Elation suddenly filled me, but it was just as quickly quashed as Geodude rose, breathing hard, but otherwise not too worse for wear.

"Looks like he still has some fight in him. Charmander, finish it with Ember!"

Charmander fired the fist-sized fireballs from his mouth and Geodude, surprisingly grunted in pain when they met their target. He reeled back and collapsed once again.

But then he shakily stood.

"He's a tough one," I muttered. "Metal Claw!"

Charmander charged and was about to swipe his steel claws across Geodude's body when the Rock Pokemon suddenly jerked ramrod straight and let out a bellow.

Then he was enveloped in an incandescent glow.

I knew enough about Pokemon to know what that meant.

Geodude was evolving.

Charmander and I gaped as Geodude grew three times as large and sprouted legs and an extra pair of arms. What was strange, though, was that Charmander seemed paralyzed, like he was rooted to the spot by some unseen force.

Finally, the glow faded, leaving behind a Pokemon that stood a foot taller than my starter, with a hide that was far rockier than before, and four arms that looked like they could do a lot of damage.

The Graveler uttered a low, guttural noise and Charmander fearfully took a step back.

"Now we're talking," Brock said, suddenly uncharacteristically animated, obviously excited at the sudden evolution of his beloved Pokemon. "I knew he would evolve anytime now. Mega Punch!"

Graveler reared back his two right fists and I screamed for Charmander to move out of the way. He jumped back and just narrowly missed the now incredibly powerful attack that completely demolished the ground beneath them and caused Graveler's fists to go straight through. He yanked them out and Brock shouted, "Rollout!"

Like before, Graveler curled up and rolled at Charmander at a much faster speed than before. Charmander just managed to dive to the side as the Rock Pokemon barreled right past.

And straight towards me.

I froze as I tried to come up with a viable solution to avoid what would surely be death if Graveler hit me. I didn't need to, though, as Graveler showed much more control over his roll and swerved to side and circled back. I sighed at having avoided certain fatal injuries, and sharply sucked in a breath as I saw him go for Charmander again.

"Charmander, jump over him!"

He did so, kicking off a stalagmite and soared over the rolling cannonball that was Graveler. Graceler completely pulverized the stone and dust rose. Charmander took a few steps back, watching for any movement from inside the cloud.

Several tense seconds passed. Suddenly, Graveler leaped out and grabbed Charmander with two hands before he could react. My starter struggled to break free, squirming and twisting in the Rock-type's grip, but they ended when Brock gave a command.

"Mega Punch."

Graveler reared back a rocky fist, lightly tossed Charmander up, and let loose. The fist went deep into Charmander's gut, and from here I could hear the sound he made as the breath was violently knocked from his lungs. He flew back to me and I braced myself, thinking he was gonna crash into me. Instead, he fell to ground and rolled to a stop just in front of me.

I stared at him, my expression on of stricken horror, as Karen would later tell me, and I kneeled and gently picked him up. He was awake, clinging to consciousness. He succumbed it, despite his struggles. I stroked his head gently and recalled him to his Pokeball. I took another one and pulled my arm back to toss it, and hesitated.

I didn't want to send Pikachu out, knowing full well that he could suffer the same fate as Charmander. I didn't want to see my friends get hurt more than they needed to.

_I should forfeit. That way, Pikachu will be spared._

_ NO! We already went through this. We can win_

I shook my head and sent out my last battle-capable Pokemon.

Pikachu seemed a lot more confident this time, likely owing to the fact that he knew a super-effective Steel-type attack. We both knew he stood some sort of chance against the bulky Rock Pokemon. Plus, I was certain that his speed would give him that needed edge to win.

With my confidence boosted just a smidge, I ordered Pikachu to attack. He zoomed off and stopped next to the bewildered Graveler. Pikachu jumped and spun, his Iron Tail colliding head-on. Graveler reeled back and Pikachu dashed off, coming back and attacking with Iron Tail again. Graveler grabbed at him, likely hoping to catch him like he had with Bulbasaur's vine during Karen's challenge over two weeks ago. But with evolution, what he had gained in strength he lost I speed. He missed and Pikachu zoomed off only to come back and attack. Pikachu successfully pulled of this maneuver until Graveler got lucky: when Pikachu's Iron Tail made contact, Graveler grabbed at him and took firm hold on his tail. Pikachu and Karen cried out in shock as Graveler grinned.

"Mega Punch."

Graveler lifted Pikachu in front of him, dangling upside down, struggling desperately to escape, and Graveler carried out his Trainer's command. The three-fingered fist collided with Pikachu's gut with extreme force and sent him flying. Pikachu bounced off a stalagmite and fell to the ground.

"Pikachu! Are you alright?"

Pikachu tried weakly to get back up, but kept falling down. Finally, after several attempts, he gave up and collapsed.

I stared at badly injured Pikachu, my mind having gone completely numb. I couldn't move, couldn't speak, couldn't do anything besides stare at the Electric Mouse.

Finally, after what seemed like hours, I grit my teeth. I grit my teeth so hard it started to hurt, then went numb. I couldn't in my right mind send out Rattata, he was far too exhausted. I recalled Pikachu to his Pokeball.

I turned and walked away, ignoring Karen's cry of, "Jack, wait!" I walked out of the Gym and didn't look back.

I lost.

Again.

* * *

The new moon cast no light over the grassy hill. It was total dark, save for the tiny pinpricks of light above that were the stars.

I was perched atop the exact same branch, on the exact same tree, on the exact same hill, as when I had first lost against Brock two weeks ago. I absently reached up and rubbed at my aching jaw.

"You know, Jack, you really oughta find different places to brood," came a voice from below.

I glanced down and there was Karen, just like two weeks ago, except my Pokemon weren't at her feet. My head swam with the strange sensation of dejá vu and I shook my head. I readjusted my footing and said nothing, too engrossed in my thoughts, in the images of my Pokemon getting pummeled.

So engrossed, in fact, that I didn't notice the telltale shaking of the tree and branches, the sway of the leaves. Then, with a grunt of effort, a figure hauled itself up onto my branch. I reeled in shock and almost fell off.

Karen had gotten up here somehow and was now straddling the branch, twenty feet above the ground. She grinned up at me, hands gripping the branch for balance.

"What's up?"

My mouth opened and closed a few times before I could get out a coherent response. "What the hell are you doing? How the hell did you get up here?"

She shrugged, causing the branch to sway. "I climbed. Duh."

I managed to recover from my shock and fixed her with a look. "You need to get down. It's too dangerous. What if you fall and break you neck?"

"Oh, I'm not worried about that. Besides, you wouldn't let me fall, would you?"

I opened my mouth to tell that she needed to get down, to say that what she was doing was stupid. What came out instead was, "No. I wouldn't."

"You see? No worries."

"Why are you up here?"

"I wanted to stand up here with you."

"No, you need to gt back down. It's way too dangerous," I repeated.

"I should be saying the same thing to you."

"That's different."

"Oh yeah? How so?" She shifted on the branch, no doubt her rear beginning to hurt.

"Because I've had training. You, have not."

"I've been in a gymnastics class before!" she exclaimed, indignant.

"How long ago?"

She glanced away and muttered something incoherent.

"What was that?" I leaned toward her.

"When I was five!"

"I rest my case." I leaned back against the trunk of the tree.

She huffed and the branched swayed dangerously as she stood shakily. I ended up having to grab her arm when she lurched, dangerously close to falling. She stared at the ground below in stark terror, then it faded.

"You see?" she said shakily. "I knew you wouldn't let me fall."

I said nothing as she straightened and leaned on me for support. Together, standing side by side on our branch, we watched the gentle tinkling of the diamond stars. She leaned her head on my shoulders and whispered, "They're beautiful."

I nodded.

Some silence, in which Karen looped an arm around mine to keep balance.

"I love you, Jack."

I jerked in utter shock and, in an action that wasn't customary to me, gawked. My heart began to jackhammer and my face got hotter.

"You know, in a platonic way," she elaborated. "The way best friends love each other. We are best friends, aren't we?"

It took some time for me to calm my racing heart and get something past my bone dry throat.

"Y-yeah, best friends."

She smiled warmly and gave me a quick peck on the cheek.

I blinked. "What was that for?"

"For being such a great friend. And for my vote of confidence in you. You'll be challenging Brock again, right?"

I averted my gaze. "No."

It was her turn to be shocked.

"What? Why the hell not?"

"Because, I don't want Charmander, Rattata and Pikachu to go through that again. It's too much of a risk. What if something way worse happens to them?" My throat constricted and I tried to keep from choking on my words. I didn't seem to fool Karen, though, because she frowned and patted my hand.

"Jack, remember what I said two weeks ago?"

"Yeah. 'When you fall, you get right back on the Ponyta'."

"Exactly. You lost twice to Brock. So what? At least you were able to beat his Onix this time, and pretty much forced Geodude to evolve by pummeling him. You did great, Jack, it's just that that sudden evolution threw you off and you lost. But if you can prepare yourself for his Graveler's powerful attacks, then I know you can beat him. You just gotta keep trying." She smiled.

I stared into her warm brown eyes, and her smile just melted away my insecurities.

"And besides, three time's the charm, right?"

I laughed. "Yeah, I guess."

"'Atta boy." Karen patted my cheek.

Together, we stood side by side, and we watched the gentle twinkling of the diamonds in the sky.

* * *

**Author's Note:** So what'd you think? Be honest, I can take some criticism.

On that note, Feliz Navidad, y prospero Año Nuevo!

Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!


	9. Third Time's the Charm?

**Chapter 9-Third Time's the Charm?**

Again, almost two months before an update. I'm sorry guys, I just lost my want to write for a while. It happens more often that you may think. I'll try to have the next one up sooner.

* * *

The stick spun back and forth rapidly on top of the kindle, and a small puff of smoke came up from it. The person spinning the stick spun it even harder and, finally, a spark flew. It landed on the kindling and it immediately caught. The fire soon spread to a comfortable size as he piled on some wood to feed it.

Gary sat back with a relieved sigh. "Finally! Over an hour trying to light this thing..." He rubbed his aching hands. "Probably woulda been a good idea to buy some matches back in Pewter. Bah, too late now. At least I got a cash reward for beating the Leader." He sat back and Squirtle came to his side and Pidgey lighted on his shoulder, and his most recent catch, a regular, purple Rattata, hopped onto his other shoulder. He placed a hand on Squirtle's head in a gesture of affection. His starter nuzzled into his hand and Gary smiled. .

His gaze went to the fire and his mind drifted. "Jack has his Charmander to light fires like this," he mumbled. "But losers always have it easier. That's why I'm better than him, cause I have to do it the hard way."

_Am I really? _

He dropped his gaze to the ground. _Am I really better than Jack?_

"Of course I am," he told himself.

_Who are you trying to convince?_

"I don't need to convince anyone. I _am _better than Jack. I beat that Leader on my first try two weeks ago, and I doubt Jack's beat him yet. They probably would have caught up to me by now if he had." He nodded to himself. "Besides, I always beat him in those mock battles at the academy. That just proves it."

_Does it really?_

He always did manage to beat Jack in those battles, even when he was at a type disadvantage. He beat everyone in the class. He was the best battler of them all. But, thinking back on it, he had always defeated Jack by the slimmest of margins. Once, he had the Magnemite he commanded use Thunder Wave to slow down the Growlithe Jack had so that he could knock it out with a well-placed Thundershock. But even with his Pokemon crippled like that, he had come so close to beating Gary. His Magnemite had been so weak, a single Scratch attack would have defeated it. The Electric-type's ability to levitate out of the Fire Pokemon's reach was the only thing that saved him. Gary had basked in the glory of going undefeated by the slimmest of margins once again, but when he had turned to send a smirk Jack's way, the other boy didn't seem at all perturbed by his loss. He simply recalled the Growlithe and handed its Pokeball to their teacher before heading back to class.

He was undefeated in school, the only one able to hold a candle to him being Jack, so when he lost to him on Route 22, he was completely baffled. He had beat every single time they had battle before, so why did he lose now? It left him dumbfounded, and irritated, but he didn't let it show and, with his usual smirk, he left, wondering just where he had gone wrong. Of course, it was made all the worse when those two guys in black jumped him.

How did Jack suddenly get good enough to beat him?

"Maybe it had something to do with his dad being a Gym Leader..." Gary sighed. Jack's father was a Gym Leader, which had to be why he was a good fighter. Gary, on the other hand, didn't even know who his father was. The closest thing he had growing up was Professor Oak. "Son of a Gym Leader, huh..."

He sighed and looked up at the star-filled night sky. "Huh, the stars are really bright tonight. Wonder why that is ..." The brush rustled behind him and he glanced over his shoulder. He ignored it, though, looking back at the fire. "Probably just a Rattata, or somethin'."

As the minutes ticked by, the warmth of the crackling flames spread over him, lulling him to sleep. His head would occasionally dip down to his chest and he would jerk it back up in an effort to stay awake. As time went on, though, the interval between dips shortened until it happened every few seconds. His chin met his chest and he closed his eyes.

He was in no position to defend himself when the purple projectile hurtled out from the trees and collided with his Rattata. He cried out in pain and was thrown forward off Gary's shoulder by the force of it, narrowly avoiding falling into the fire. Gary jumped to his feet, Pidgey flapping beside him. The bird was knocked out off the air almost immediately as another projectile crashed into him head-on, crumpling to the ground. Gary whirled to face the trees, completely bewildered, as another projectile flew towards Squirtle.

"Withdraw!"

Squirtle swiftly pulled his limbs inside his shell as the purple energy hit him. It sent him sliding back several feet and it dissipated. Another one came flying out from the trees.

Heading right for him.

Gary only had time to widen his eyes in shock before it collided with him, knocking him back and sprawling to the ground. He landed on the small fire he had managed to build, snuffing it out, and slid back a few feet.

"What the hell..." He lifted his head and saw three figures step out of the forest. With the fire out, it was too dark to make out any specific details, but one of them was definitely a Pokemon. He caught the glimmer of something metal in its hand, but saw no more as it attack Squirtle with another projectile when he popped out of his shell to attack. He was knocked out right away. One of the other two, a man, approached him. Gary tried to sit up but the man stomped on his chest, which was already aching from the previous attack.

"We meet again."

Gary looked up, the man's boot on his chest, holding him down. He caught a glimpse of what seemed to be a large, red R on his chest. He tried to push the man's boot away, but he pressed down even harder, enough to make Gary fight to take a breath.

"Are you sure it's him, Andrew?"

"No doubt about it, Ryan," the man holding him down responded. "That messy hair and stupid purple jeans are a dead giveaway." He stomped down and Gary cried out again.

"Who... are you?"

"I'm surprised you don't remember us, after we went through the trouble of trying to steal your Pokemon."

Gary took in a sharp breath as recognition flooded through him.

"What the hell do you... want from me?"

The man glanced a his partner and looked back at him, sneering. "Simple. I want payback, you little son of a bitch."

He bent down, yanked Gary up by the collar of his shirt, and punched him hard. Gary felt a sudden sharp pain as his lip tore open and blood spurted out onto the grass beside him and onto his shirt, then darkness.

* * *

"Alright, Pikachu, Rattata, since you two are way faster than Charmander"-I received a smack on the head from my starter, perched on my shoulder-"and aren't weak to Rock attacks, you're going to be the biggest assets in the battle. We're gonna work on getting you as fast as possible. That way, Brock won't even be able to touch you, and you'll be getting in all the hits before he can counter-attack."

They nodded and started our next segment of training. I found some small bags and filled them with rocks before tying them around my Pokemons' torsos. I planned on using them as weights, and as I explained to Karen, if they could dodge near every attack thrown at them, they would be nigh untouchable without them. She seemed to like the idea, saying that she might steal it to use with her Pikachu, and gave me a pat on the shoulder for coming up with it.

It was the second day after my second loss to Brock. For the next two days, we trained the two Pokemon to heighten their speed. At first it was just moving around until they got used to the weights. Once they did, I had them move on to running around. When they were able to run without the weights slowing too much, I had them go through a makeshift obstacle course. They ran it until they were able to get their fastest times-thirty-two seconds for Rattata, twenty-six for Pikachu. By then I figured they were about ready for a spar with Charmander.

Charmander fired Ember at them and they did their best to dodge. At first, they were hit a couple of times, but as their match went on, they started to received only glancing blows, and by the end of the second day, they could dodge and move as if they didn't have the weights on. Elated with their progress, I decided to take the weights off and continue sparring.

They were untouchable.

Not one of Charmander's attacks could make contact with Rattata or Pikachu.

Elated with their progress, I gathered together to discuss my plan of attack after they were finished with their sparring matches

"Here's what we'll do. He'll probably send Onix out first, just like last time, so you'll face him, Rattata. Use Double Team to disorient him, and attack with Iron Tail when you get he chance. As for Graveler, your speed will be your most valuable asset against him. Disorient him, attack, then get away before he can attack you. He's incredibly strong, and one hit could leave you open for more. Don't let that happen, alright?" I affectionately place my hands on their heads and smiled. They nodded their understanding of my plan, and all three promptly pounced on me, expressing their enthusiasm.

"We'll beat him for sure this time, right?" I asked, laughing.

They nodded and proceeded to roll all over me.

* * *

I lay on my back, on the grass beneath the tree I had found myself going to regularly now, eyes closed. My Pokemon were frolicking in the field below. A slight smile found its way to my face, my Pokemon's training instilling some confidence in our second rematch.

But even then, I found myself wondering whether Karen's words would prove to be true. Would the third time really be the charm? Hopefully, I didn't want my Pokemon to suffer any more than they had at the Gym Leader's hands. And mine-

Footsteps behind me, shuffling through the grass. They stopped beside my head.

"What do you want?"

"Aw, why are you so rude?" I could practically hear the pout in Karen's voice.

I only cracked open an eye and glanced at her before closing it again.

"Have you forgotten what I said about finding other places to-"

"I'm not brooding."

Silence as she shuffled her feet. "I wasn't going to say that..."

"Really, now."

"Yes, really."

I opened my eyes and sat up as her Bulbasaur, Pidgey, and Pikachu joined my Pokemon in their play in the field. Karen plopped down next to me, not saying anything. Glancing at her, I could tell she wanted to say something. I waited for her to speak. Finally, after several silent minutes, she did.

"Jack, do you think me beating Brock was just... blind luck?"

I was silent for a moment, studying her, before looking across Viridian Forest and answering. "Where is this coming from, all of a sudden?"

She sighed. "I... I don't know, really. It's just..."

"What?"

She met my eye, then quickly looked back down at her shoes. Her eyes seemed just a little red. "Nothing," she whispered.

"This isn't like you, Karen."

She looked up at me.

"You're usually so much louder."

She furrowed her eyebrows, then her slightly pained expression melted to one of what I took to be anger. I was afraid I had said something that had upset her, and was about to apologize, before she suddenly laughed softly and turned to watch our Pokemon running around.

"You're right, I usually am." She gave a short laugh as she wiped an arm across her eyes.

I raised an eyebrow. _Has she been... crying? Why?_

"Sorry to have bothered you while you were relaxing." She moved to stand up, but I stopped her with a hand on her slender shoulder. I gave her a look that I hoped expressed my concern, and that I wanted to know what was going on.

She stared at me for a second before sitting back down, pulling her legs up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them and resting her chin down on her knees. We said nothing as a gentle wind came and rustled the tree above our heads, causing the shadows to sway and create incorporeal, ephemeral forms that quickly disappeared.

"Jack..."

I turned to her.

"You're a much better Trainer than me, and yet... you can't beat Brock. Twice you've challenged him, and twice you've lost. And here I am, beating him on my first try." She blinked hard, as if she were holding back tears. I was mystified. What could she possibly have been crying about? "I... do you think it was just luck, Jack?" She turned to me, moisture threatening to spill and slide down her cheek.

I didn't hesitate in my answer. "Of course not. You're a good Trainer, Karen, and I'm no better than you-"

"Yes, you are!" she suddenly shouted. Our Pokemon stopped to look over at us, and Karen turned away. They resumed their play when nothing else happened. "Yes, you are a better Trainer than me, Jack. Way better."

"No, I'm not." I tried my best to make my voice gentle, yet firm. I didn't seem to work as she whirled to face me, the tears finally falling.

"You _are, _Jack. You're _much_ better than me. You're the son of a Gym Leader, for goodness' sake!" Only a select few knew that, her being on of them. Which was odd, actually, it's usually difficult to keep anything secret in a town as small as Pallet.

"My father being a Gym Leader has nothing to do with me being a Trainer," I responded matter-of-factly.

"Come on, Jack, you know it does," Karen said, suddenly subdued. "Your father was good enough to be a Gym Leader, and it only makes sense that he passed it on to you."

I didn't know how to respond to that, so I didn't. After an extended silence, I said, "Even if my father was a great Trainer, that doesn't automatically mean I'll be a great Trainer, too. Nor does it mean that I'm better than you."

"But you always beat me in those practice battles at the academy."

"Karen, you and I both know those battles were stupid, and no way to really measure a person's battling skill. Hell, Gary always beat _me_, and I was able to beat him back on Route 22."

She place her chin back on her knees. "You didn't just beat him, you smeared the floor with him."

I chuckled before lapsing into silence.

"So... you don't think it was just luck?"

"No. Karen, you have an strong innate talent for battling. And with that Leech Seed maneuver you used against Brock's Onix proves you can be a great tactician."

She stared, then looked away, a slight tinge in her cheeks. "Thanks, Jack," she giggled.

I smiled. "Are you okay?"

She rubbed her eyes to clean off the tears. "Yeah, thanks to you."

I nodded.

She stretched out her legs and lay back in the grass, and I did so as well. We gazed at the sky, watching the clouds drifting across the endless expanse of space.

"So when are you going to challenge Brock again?"

I thought it over for a moment. "I think tomorrow would be good," I replied.

"You'd better win, or I won't forgive you," she joked.

"Of course I will."

She smiled encouragingly and clasped my hand, giving a squeeze.

We lay there under the shadow of the tree until our Pokemon came back when it began to darken and returned to the Pokemon Center.

* * *

The night had fallen, and while some were still awake at this time, most were in the grip of sleep. A single bird called, but whether it was a Pidgey or Spearow was impossible to tell. Few may have heard it, and those that did would have paid it no heed, continuing about their business or slumbering on.

Which is why Rattata found it odd that he had woken up. He blinked a few times before raising his head and glancing around the darkened room. His Trainer was sound asleep on one of the two beds occupying the room, his female human companion on the other. He and Pikachu lay alongside him on the bed, while Charmander slept on the floor beside it. The Fire-type had decided it would be the most prudent choice, given the flame on the end of his tail and the high probability of inadvertently lighting his master on fire. Looking across the room, he could see the female human's Pikachu and Bulbasaur sleeping at her side, much like he was, and Pidgey perched on the headboard.

Pikachu's sleeping form stirred beside over, and Rattata glanced over as the Electric mouse sat up, and ear twitching. He shook his head, ears flopping back and forth. Rattata sat on his haunches and waited for Pikachu wake himself up. Said Pokemon rubbed his eyes with his pudgy hands before looking at Rattata.

Pikachu asked him if he was ready.

Rattata responded that he was.

They stood, taking care not to jostle their Trainer too much, and hopped down from the bed. They went for the window, and stopped when a soft growl came from behind them. They turned to meet Charmander's inquisitive stare.

Pikachu understood the unspoken question, and he explained to the Fire-type that they were heading out to train.

Rattata affirmed Pikachu's explanation with a quick nod of his head, golden fur glinting quietly in the sliver of the moon.

Charmander stared at them some more, saying nothing, before lowering his head and going back to sleep. It seemed that he really had taken after his Trainer's stoicism somewhat.

Rattata and Pikachu shared a glance before turning and hopping onto the open window. They hopped down into the grass outside and made their way to the tree that their Trainer had visited so often. They stopped beneath it and Pikachu turned to Rattata, asking him how he wanted to start.

Rattata replied that he wanted to begin with some basic exercises to help him along.

Pikachu agreed to stand back and coach him along whenever he encountered troubles.

Rattata closed his eyes and concentrated. Pikachu had explained to him that Pokemon of his type could learn a variety of different attacks, including elemental ones. They had started this training a week ago, when Rattata had asked Pikachu would be willing to teach him an attack. Since then, the little Electric-type helped him realize his potential for learning the move and Rattata had been practicing it since then. All he wanted was to please his Trainer, and he thought that by learning some elemental attacks, he could do just that.

It didn't take long for sparks to come to life over his small form. He recalled what Pikachu had taught him and focused his mind to hone the sparks into an attack. A second later, with little effort after all the training, he fired a small bolt of electricity at the tree, leaving a small scorch mark and a feeling of pride in Rattata.

Pikachu nodded approvingly, telling him that he had mastered it now.

Rattata practiced firing at different objects, fine-tuning his accuracy and power, before Pikachu called it a night and they returned to their Trainer's room. The training to improve his performance with his new attack, coupled with the training to enhance his and Pikachu's speed, left him drained and eager for some rest. He would not let his Trainer down again.

* * *

We went through the glass doors of the Gym and strode for the battlefield. We stood there a moment, glancing around, before Karen turned to take a seat on the bleachers. Honestly, this whole process of entering was starting to bug the hell out of me.

I stood at my end of the arena-it was flat this time, and I began to think over any possible strategies-and waited for Brock to appear. I waited, my slight scowl on my face. I waited, placing my hands in my pockets. I waited, kicking at a loose pebble.

Finally, when it seemed he wasn't going to come and we were going to leave, the Gym Leader emerged from the back and stood at his spot.

He met my eye and, offering no explanation for his tardiness, plucked a Pokeball from his belt. I took one of my own and he waited. I nodded, he nodded in return, and he tossed the Pokeballs.

Onix roared his challenge at Rattata. Rattata fearlessly stood his ground.

"Headbutt!"

"Double Team!"

Onix dashed forward, head down, and Rattata split into eight other Rattata. Onix's head crushed one of them, dissipating the illusion, and the remaining seven fanned out. Onix reared back up and whipped his head back and forth, trying to pinpoint the real one.

"Attack!"

The tails of each of the seven Pokemon went metallic and rushed the rock snake. Onix swiped his tail across the ground in the hopes of hitting them all. Two dissipated, but the rest jumped over it and kept going. They leaped and Brock shouted a command.

"Iron Defense!"

_Iron Defense? Since when does he know _that?

Onix shrunk a bit and a momentary metallic sheen flashed over his form. The Rattatas' Iron Tail hit their mark, but where Onix had reacted in pain before, he didn't so much as flinch.

"Surprised? You're not the only one that's been training, you know."

Rattata's illusion clones disappeared and he jumped back, as dumbstruck as me. If not even Rattata's super-effective Steel attack could so much as faze Onix when he used Iron Defense, how the hell was he going to take him down?

Would I end up losing again?

I looked over at Karen. Her eyes were wide with shock and concern, her hand over her mouth. She seemed to have reached the same conclusion as me. I turned back to the battle.

"No. I will _not_ lose. Iron Tail!"

Rattata ran and leaped, swinging his tail onto Onix's head.

He didn't even flinch.

"Again!"

No reaction.

Countless more times, then nothing

Once more, and Rattata was tired, panting.

"Damn it!"

"Bind."

Onix uncoiled and launched himself forward at the exhausted Normal-type.

"Double Team!" I screamed.

Rattata split into only two this time, and when Onix wrapped his tail around one, it disappeared. The real Rattata ran around him, trying to stay out of his reach.

"Headbutt!"

"Jump!"

Rattata vaulted over Onix's head. Unfortunately, his foot caught the tip of the rock snake's horn and Rattata tumbled to the ground.

"Headbutt again."

"Move! Use Double T-" I was interrupted by a sudden shout from behind me.

"Brock! Brock!"

It was that Gym Trainer, the Pidgeot Scout, from two and a half weeks ago, when Karen challenged Brock. The one that insulted her.

"I'm in the middle of a battle."

"I know, I'm sorry. I wouldn't interrupt is this weren't an emergency!" The kid really did seem frantic.

"What is it?" Brock's attention was solely on the Pidgeot Scout now.

"The museum! S-someone's attacking it!"

Brock's expression darkened considerably. Karen stood from her seat and I made a fist, glaring at the boy. He noticed and shrank away.

"Attacking? What?" Karen sounded nervous.

"Is it them again?" Brock asked the boy.

"I-I think so!"

Brock nodded, dead serious now. He come to my side of the field, recalling Onix, as Karen jumped down from the bleachers.

"I'm sorry Jack, but we're going to have to postpone our battle. I have to deal with this."

"We're coming, too!" Karen exclaimed.

I looked at her, raising my eyebrows. I was about to tell her that we should let the Gym Leader handle this, and that I didn't appreciate being volunteered for something, when Brock said, "That's out of the question. Stay here, it's too dangerous."

The Leader turned and sprinted out of the Gym.

"Wait, Brock!"

Karen ran after him.

"Damn it, Karen, get back here!"

I took a number of steps forward and stopped. I turned to the Gym Trainer, fixing him with an icy stare. He shrank back even more, letting out a soft whimper. I glared for a second more before my hand shot out and gripped him by the collar of his green camping outfit. He yelped as I pulled him in closer, his nose inches away from mine.

"Don't think I've forgotten about that remark of yours."

He shook his head fearfully and I released him, sending him tumbling to the ground. He scurried away.

"Coward," I muttered.

I turned and ran after Karen and Brock.

* * *

I arrived at the museum, just a few minute's north of the Gym. A crowd had gathered around in front it, and the first thing I noticed was the gaping hole in the side of the building, and black smoke pouring out. I tore my gaze away from the carnage and looked around, almost immediately spotting Karen's telltale white hat.

"Karen, where's Brock?"

"Over there."

I followed where she had gestured and saw the Gym Leader speaking with a police officer. I approached him, Karen following.

"What happened?"

"I told you to stay behind."

"We wanted to help." There she goes, volunteering me again. It's not that I didn't want to help, I did, I just didn't like that I was being volunteered like this.

Brock stared at us before sighing. "Two people destroyed that wall, went inside, and are supposedly still-"

He was cut off when the ground was suddenly rocked by an explosion from the museum. Then, out from the smoke came three small objects came hurtling out from the smoke. The bounced a couple of times before stopping a few yards in front of us. I raised and eyebrow at them. What the hell were they?

"Stun grenades!" Brock shouted. "Close your eyes!"

Most of the people nearby did so, but, confused, I wasn't able to in time and was consequently blinded when the grenades went off with an earsplitting bang. There was a deafening ringing in my ears and my vision had gone completely white. It started to clear a few seconds seconds later, though, and I found myself suddenly on one knee. I didn't remember doing that at all. I wiped at my eyes to get rid of the white spots, then looked up when I noticed two figures had already exited the building and were halfway to the cover of the wooded area behind the museum. One of them was a woman, standing atop a large, violet cobra, with a pattern on its hood that looked similar to an angry face,and the other, a man, stood with what appeared to be at first glance a floating head. They wore white black clothes underneath cloaks, but I couldn't see their faces as the hoods were up. Both carried bulging sacks with them.

"Stop right there!" Brock shouted. He ran forward and Karen and I followed.

The two turned to us, and a grin broke out on the woman's face.

"Well, well, looks like the little Leader wants to play!" she sneered.

"Forget them, let's just get this shit back," the man said, his tone smooth and professional.

"Oh, and what's this!" She ignored him, turning to attention to us. "And who are these little brats?"

"What the hell are you doing?" Brock asked menacingly. Hearing his tone and looking at his expression on restrained rage at those that dared attack his city, it made me relieved that we were on the same side.

"We re not obliged to answer to you," the man responded coolly.

"Are you brainless?" the woman taunted, in stark contrast to her partner's professional demeanor. She hefted her sack, saying, "We're taking this!"

"No, you're not," Brock said simply. He took a Pokeball and sent out Onix.

"Oh, this is gonna be fun!" the woman exclaimed, hopping down from the serpent's head. "Arbok-"

"Dammit, no!" the man shouted, striding over and gripping her wrist. "We're already behind schedule as it is, this'll just piss of the boss even more than he already is."

She yanked her wrist away. "This won't take long." She took a step forward, smirking.

"You can such a stupid bitch sometimes," the man.

Either the woman didn't hear him, or she ignored him. "Arbok, Sludge Bomb!"

The Arbok's jaws opened, revealing rows of needle sharp teeth, and a blob of purple shot out. But I noticed right away that it wasn't aimed at Onix.

It was heading straight for Brock.

"Metal Claw!"

Out of his Pokeball that I had thrown, Charmander jumped and slashed the Sludge Bomb apart with his steel sharp claws.

"Dammit, Jack, stay out of this! You, too, Karen."

I glanced over and saw she had brought out her Pokemon, Pikachu and Bulbasaur at her feet and Pidgey flapping in the air beside her.

"No way we're leaving you to do this alone!" she cried.

"Oho, so the little boy want a piece of this huh? I'd be happy to oblige! Take care of them," she said to her partner, gesturing to Brock and Karen.

"It will be done." He tossed two other Pokeballs and from within one of them came a squat, blue-green, quadrapedal Pokemon. It had a pink bud on its back, surrounded by a number of leaves. The other Pokemon was a medium sized canine with orange fur over most of its body, interspersed with black stripes, and beige fluff around its neck, snout, down its front and on its tail. The Ivysaur, Growlithe, and Weezing moved forward, ready to fight.

The woman sent out her own two Pokemon. One was was short, humanoid Pokemon, just a little taller than Charmander, with gray skin and some odd ridges on its head. The other looked remarkably similar to Charmander, except it was about foot-and-a-half taller, with red scales rather than orange, and a small horn on its head. The Machop and Charmeleon moved forward alongside the woman's Arbok.

I sent out Rattata and Pikachu. The former didn't _seem_ too worse for wear. Onix had been unable to inflict damage, but Rattata had gotten tired from attack Onix incessantly. I had to watch out for him.

"Attack!" the woman screeched.

The battle erupted.

The Charmeleon went straight for Charmander, maybe because it was eager to test the strength of its pre-evolved form. Obviously, Machop went for Rattata, seeing as how it had a type advantage over him. Which left Arbok to attack Pikachu.

Confident that Rattata and Pikachu were fast enough to avoid most of their assailant's attacks, I focused on giving commands to Charmander. The Charmeleon's claws were drawn back, and it slashed down towards my starter.

"Deflect! Iron Tail!"

Charmander's steel-hard tail came around and slammed into the Charmeleon's claws, knocking them away. The Charmeleon whirled, aiming to hit Charmander with its tail.

"Metal Claw!"

Charmander deflected its attack again with his claws, and the opposing Fire-type staggered.

"Iron Tail!"

Charmander charged as the Charmeleon turned to face him, snarling. It was met by my starter's steel-hard tail to the face. While the attack may not have done an awful amount of damage, the sheer force from it sent his evolved form reeling. Another well placed Iron Tail to the head sent it crashing to the ground, flat out knocking it out.

I thought that it had been too easy to defeat the Charmeleon, and began to think over possible reasons-maybe it had just evolved and was unaccustomed to its new form, or simply the fact that its Trainer's attention was divided between three separate Pokemon, and she couldn't battle efficiently like that. My train of though was broken when Rattata suddenly sailed by in front of me. My head snapped over to his slumped form, then to the direction he had come from.

I was met with the sight of the Machop rushing at me.

"Karate Chop!" the woman ordered.

The Machop brought its hand up, fingers rigid, and swiped down at me. I jumped back, and it went for Low Kick. I dove over it and jumped back up behind it. On impulse, I kicked the Pokemon's back, sending sprawling to the ground. I stepped back and called for Charmander.

"Ember!"

The fireballs collided with the Machop as it stood, knocking it back to the ground. It stood again, and was knocked away by Charmander's Iron Tail. The Machop fell, unconscious.

There was a loud hiss, and I whirled to see Arbok coming at me. I dove to the side and it barreled past. It stopped and spat sludge at me, and I jumped back to avoid it.

"Pikachu, Thundershock!"

Pikachu's cheeks sparked before a bolt of electricity went from him to the violet snake. It convulsed from the attack and fell to the grass. It reared back up to spit out Sludge Bomb at its Trainers command, and I had Charmander use Ember. The attacks collided and like with the Gengar two and a half weeks ago, the sludge's trajectory was halted and it plopped onto the grass, sizzling.

"Damn, Arbok, Crunch!"

My Pokemon had moved to stand in front of me, and I had somehow ended up with my back to the tree, ten feet away. The Arbok charged, jaws open.

"Ember!"

The snake twisted its form, and the fireballs missed. It barreled through my Pokemon, knocking them away, and kept coming at me.

I jumped back as it jaws snapped shut right in front of my torso, and it threw itself on me. I fell on my back beneath a tree, and the Arbok reared up, teeth glinting. I frantically looked around for anything to defend myself with, and my eyes fell on a broken tree branch. It was thick enough to serve its purpose. I snatched it up as the Poison Pokemon lunged, hissing. I brought the branch up and swung it with all my might into the side of its head. It was dazed for a moment before its vision cleared at lunged again. This time I placed the branch above my face, and its jaws clamped down on it, its snout not six inches away. It hissed incessantly as it writhed, jaws working on the branch, trying to get to me. I fought with all my strength to keep the Pokemon away from me. My arms were beginning to burn with the strain of having a ten foot long, who-knows-hows-many pound Pokemon at bay.

Fear lanced through me when I heard a crack. Another crack, and I fearfully noticed that cracks were spreading down were the Arbok's teeth met the bark. Another second later. The branch completely snapped into three, leaving me with two pieces and the other one in the snake's mouth. It spat it out and, hissing and its hood flared open, it lunged once more.

A sudden bolt of electricity come from seemingly out of nowhere and collided with the Arbok's snout. It convulsed and slid off me, giving me a chance to stand. I turned to where the Thundershock had come from, expecting to be looking at Pikachu. I was shocked to see Rattata's little golden form coursing with sparks.

"Rattata?" _Since when does _he_ know Thundershock?_

The Arbok suddenly reared up, hissed, and was about to lunge when it was hit by another Thundershock. It reeled back and I took the chance to hit it in the head with a piece of the branch in one hand. It fell and got back up, and I raised the branches in a defensive posture. It hissed, its forked tongue wiggling back and forth. I stared as the pattern on its hood appeared to shift. I blinked, and it was still. Although something about it seemed a little of, I just couldn't put my finger on _what _it was.

It struck, jaws open for Crunch. I swung at it with a branch, making contact with its head. It slowed down for a second before it came again. I froze, staring into its gaping maw, at the sharp teeth, and multitude of fist-sized fireballs hit the inside of its mouth. Arbok's eyes bulged and it threw itself to the ground, snapping its jaws to rid itself of the pain.

"Now! Iron Tail!"

Charmander, Rattata, and Pikachu charged, their tails with that metallic sheen. Arbok only had the time to glance up before it took three consecutive Iron Tails to its face and hood. It hissed in pain and fell over on its side, unmoving.

"You little son of a bitch!"

I turned to face the woman as she ran up. She lashed out with a kick that connected squarely with my side. I cried out, but I took the opening and wrapped my arm around her leg. She tried to break free, but I cut the attempts short by bringing my delivering a vicious elbow to her thigh.

She screeched and limped away, holding her thigh.

"You'll pay for that you little shit!"

He partner suddenly ran up to her, breathing hard. I took the reprieve to glance over at Karen and Brock. They were fine, and the man's Pokemon were gone, which I took to mean that they had been defeated.

"No, we have to get out of here. Leave them, we're late enough as it is."

"What? Hell, no! This brat hurt me and-"

"Damn it, Jessie, we're leaving." His tone left no room for argument.

She glared at him, seething, as Karen and Brock approached. Seeing that they were outnumbered seemed to change her mind about staying and continuing to fight.

"I'll get you for this," she threatened me.

They reached inside their cloaks and each pulled out small, black objects. They threw them to the ground and they exploded, sending up a thick black smoke. I inhaled and immediately started coughing, Karen and Brock doing the same. I looked around for the two thieves, but could see nothing, the smoke was so thick. My eyes were beginning to water. My coughing fit went on until shortly after the smoke dissipated. They gradually ceased, and I wiped my the moisture from my eyes.

They were gone.

Silence as Brock glowered at the demolished museum and I scowled.

"Smoke bombs? Who do they think they are, Batman?" Karen said.

* * *

Brock watched over the clean up crew, people who had volunteered to help out. I approached him.

"What were they after?" I asked.

Brock was silent for a moment before he responded. "The museum had the skulls of Dragon Pokemon on display, a Dratini's and a Dragonite's. They're gone."

"What would they want with them?"

He shook his head. "I have no clue. They left one of those sacks behind, but the skull, the Dragonite's, was shattered."

I processed the information. These two had attacked the museum, just for some skulls? What was the use of them?

"Who are they?"

"They've appeared here in Pewter before. They're part of a large underground crime syndicate.

"Team Rocket."

"Team Rocket?"

He nodded, lapsing into silence.

I only vaguely remember hearing the name before, but I didn't think they were a criminal organization.

After a few minutes of silence, Brock spoke.

"I apologize that our battle was interrupted. I had to deal with this."

I faced him and nodded. "I understand."

"Jack, you have proven yourself to be a very talented Trainer. Which is why I'm giving you this."

He reached into his pocket, pulling something out. He extended his hand and I saw what it was.

The Boulder Badge.

"You're... giving it to me?" I was dumbfounded.

"No, I'm not giving it to you. You've earned it. Take it."

I looked at the badge, glinting dully under the sun. I slowly reached out to take it, then shook my head and let my hand fall back to my side. "No, I can't take it. I didn't beat you. The official Pokemon League rules state that in order to receive a Gym badge, a Trainer has to defeat the Gym Leader of a town or city. I haven't done that yet."

He watched me for a moment before chuckling. "You are an admirable young man, Jack. But that's where you're wrong."

I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion.

"The exact wording of the rule is, 'If a Pokemon Trainer proves that he is worthy of obtaining a Gym badge, then the Gym Leader is obliged to reward him with a badge'. Seeing you battle, I've come to realize that you are a very competent Trainer. You've proven yourself worthy, Jack. Take the badge, I insist."

I felt flattered being praised by a Gym Leader. I slowly reached out again, still hesitant about accepting the badge when I never actually beat Brock, and took the badge. I held it between my index finger and thumb, studying it. A grin broke out on my face and delight bubble up in me.

Third time's the charm?

"Oh, you finally got the badge!" Karen exclaimed, excited. "Congratulations, Jack." She then proceeded to glomp me.

"Alright, alright, Karen, I'm excited, too."

She released me from her embrace, beaming. "You see? I knew you could do it, Jack!"

I smiled. "Thanks."

"Oh, and before I forget." Brock reached into a his pocket and withdrew two envelopes. "Here."

Karen and I took them, wondering what they were.

"That's the prize money for earning the badge."

"Whoa, really?" Karen said, tearing open the envelope. "How much is it?"

"Three thousand poké."

"That's a hefty sum," I commented, withdrawing the bills from the envelope. I looked them over, then nodded and placed them back inside before stashing the envelope in my pocket, Karen putting hers in her bag. "We could get some supplies with this."

"So where are you gonna go from here?" Brock asked.

"We're heading for Cerulean!" Karen responded.

"Ah, the Cerulean Gym. Give my regards to the Gym Leader there. Word of warning, she may not be at all what you expect."

"What do you mean?" Karen said, head cocked.

Brock chuckled. "You'll see."

I turned to Karen. "Well then, shall we move on?"

"Yeah. Onto Cerulean!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** For the currency, I didn't know whether to go with dollars or yen or what, so I went with what they used in Mystery Dungeon. Take that, society.


	10. Saving the Day, and Stuff

Chapter 10-Saving the Day, and Stuff

You know what I noticed? The Pokemon Fanfic Recommendations on TVTropes is, well, nonexistent. Wouldn't it be awesome if mine were the first there? Yeah, that would be awesome...

On another note, this is definitely my fastest update, ever. You're welcome.

* * *

From Pewter City, all we could see of Mt. Moon was the peak and a little beneath it. Now, a week after having left Pewter, we could see about half of the famous landmark. If our estimations were correct, then we would be at the mountain's base in another week, and it would take another week or two to get around it and to Cerulean. I wasn't going to complain about, I was just going to do it. Of course, the trip would have been a lot more bearable if Karen wasn't complaining about the distance every five minutes.

"Why does it have to be so far away?"

I shrugged.

"Whose brilliant idea was it to put a big frickin' mountain in the way?"

"Mother Nature's."

"Why couldn't we have a Flying Pokemon fly us there?"

"You have Pidgey."

"Well, duh, but there's no way she could carry one of us, let alone both."

I shrugged again, scowling.

She was quiet. Then, five minutes later, "A month? It's gonna take a freakin' _month _to_-_"

"Karen, please, for the love of God, and with all due respect, shut up."

There ensued a surprised silence.

"You are so mean." I didn't need to look to know she was pouting.

Regardless, I glance sideways at her, then returned my scowl back down the path.

We walked on.

* * *

They set up camp in a suitable clearing that night. Somewhere from the forest Pokemon called or chittered or croaked. Karen sat by the fire that Jack's Charmander had started, idly worrying the hem of her red skirt, and watching as the fire cracked, sizzled, and popped. She glanced over at Jack. He was scowling at the night sky, contemplative. He hadn't said a word since that afternoon. Which wasn't too unusual. Sometimes he went into one of his moods where he wouldn't say a word for hours on end. It worried her, to be honest. He would always speak to her, no matter what, where he usually wouldn't with anyone else, except his mother. But now, he rarely did. She had expected them both to change while on their journey-her mother had told her stories about how she herself had change during her travels-but this was a little drastic, and incredibly quick. She sighed.

Having heard her exhale, Jack glanced over, quirking an eyebrow.

"It's nothing," she said.

He stared at her for a second before turning back to the sky.

Karen returned her gaze to the fire. Taking his behavior into consideration, she made what she thought was a sound prediction about their journey.

Everything was going to change.

* * *

Two more days of walking, and Mt. Moon didn't seem any closer. I glanced up at the clouds in the blue sky. I took in a breath, held it for a second, then let it out slowly through my nose. I turned my gaze to the ground beneath my feet, kicking at a loose rock.

I hadn't said anything since that afternoon two days ago. I was too deep in thought to have anything to say. I was being tormented by a single question.

Why did I set out on my journey?

Before I got Charmander, I told myself that the reason I wanted to set out on my own journey with my own Pokemon was because it was just something all kids did. But I got to thinking, that couldn't possibly be the only reason. Could it?

I had wanted to become a strong enough Trainer to earn the title of Champion, had wanted to be the Champion since I was little-like most kids did back then-but I only recently started questioning that dream. Why did I want to become the Champion? Was that just a hollow promise? Or was it just because my father was a Gym Leader, and I was just trying to prove myself? I was never one to live up to that "reputation", never really cared about it. Everyone in Pallet Town would always say "Ooh, you're the son of a Gym Leader? You're probably gonna be a strong Trainer some day!", but I couldn't bring myself to agree. Like I had said to Karen back in Pewter City, it didn't matter to me whether my father was strong enough to be a Gym Leader, I wasn't about to let that tell me how to live my life, how I should raise my Pokemon, what I should aspire to. Your father's a Gym Leader? You should be a Gym Leader, too! Screw you.

I had wanted to become the Pokemon Champion, but I began to question just _why_ I wanted the title. Did I subconsciously really want to live up to my father's reputation? Did I want to become Champion to make him proud? To prove my worth? _Why?_

I sighed and scowled more.

On that note, I wondered why Karen had gone her journey. Problems at home? I doubted it, she seemed happy. Maybe she just wanted to go on an adventure? I frowned at that. Could it really be that-

My eyes widened and the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. I felt an odd sensation, a stare boring into my back. This feeling...

We were being watched.

I turned to look behind me. No one. The only one in sight was Karen, walking alongside me. She didn't seem to notice anything off, as she was humming happily. The sensation of being watched faded, leaving a slight unease.

I turned back and we walked on in peace. Not even ten minutes later, I felt the stare once again. I glanced around and thought I caught a movement among the trees. I watched, but nothing happened. I was on high alert now. Someone was watching us, intending to harm us for all I knew. I had to be careful and keep an eye out for anything.

I decided not to say anything to Karen. I wanted to find whoever was spying on us, and if she knew, she would probably give us away. She was never really good at keeping secrets.

We passed under a tree, and the branches rustled. Karen glanced up, puzzled, and I clasped her wrist and yanked her back. She yelped and bumped into my chest. I was just in time, as a figure had dropped from the tree and was now crouched on the exact spot Karen had been not a second before.

"Jack, what are you-"

She stopped when she saw my expression of wary suspicion and turned. "Huh?"

I maneuvered her so I stood in front of her and glared at the boy. He seemed to be about my age, eleven, twelve. His sandy brown hair was short and rather unkempt. He wore a blue and white T-shirt dark blue jeans, and black sneakers. I couldn't get a look at his face, as his head was down.

Finally, his head snapped up to us. "Hiya!" he said with a goofy grin.

I only glared at him.

He jumped up, still smiling wide. "Y'know, when someone says hi, it's only polite to say hi back."

"That's what I always tell him!" Karen said from behind me.

"What are you-"

"Just a moment, please!" he suddenly shouted. He crouched again and begin swirling his finger through the dirt. His tongue stuck out of his mouth, like a little kid's. Karen and I stared at the odd boy as he drew intricate formulas, writing numbers and symbols, quickly working out some kind of math problem.

"Just carry the six... divide by two... add one... take the cosine of the hypotenuse and add it over here... subtract the three..." His finger slowed and eventually stopped. His expression went blank for second before he jumped up, pointing a finger at me. "You're name is Richard!"

My eyes widened and I looked at the long, incredibly complex equation. How the hell did he get a _name_ from all of that?

He seemed frozen, a look of dumb happiness on his face. Karen had moved over to the equation and studied it. "Wow, this is, like... another language... Hang on." She crouched down and pointed at a certain part of it. "Two plus two doesn't equal six."

The boy whirled and went over. He looked the whole equation over, than brightened.

"Oh, how silly of me! It doesn't! And I forgot to take the log of four!" He did so, in addition to doing other... stuff, I had _no_ idea what he did. He jumped up and pointed at me again. "Your name is Jack! And you're Karen!"

I jerked in shock and Karen gaped.

"How the hell did you know that?" I asked, stepping closer.

He shrugged. "I didn't," he responded, not at all bothered by my proximity. "I just took a guess and you caved."

"That's one helluva guess," Karen muttered.

"Eh, what can I say. I'm awesome!"

"Who are you?"

"Hm, that's a good question!" He grabbed onto a tree branch and hauled himself into a sitting position on it. He crossed his arms and legs, pursing his lips thoughtfully. "Who _am _I? Who are you? Are we actually us, or are we dreaming and we're just a blob of stuff floating in gooey stuff dreaming about stuff that shouldn't be dreamt about? Stuff," he said as an end to his philosophical monologue.

"That's not what I asked." It seemed that he had tried to attack Karen, and if that was the case, I was going to destroy him. I was giving him the benefit of the doubt, but my patience was wearing thin.

His expression suddenly turned serious. He hopped down and faced us. "I am afraid I am unable to divulge such sensitive information to individuals of questionable trustworthiness."

"What's your name?" Karen asked, considerably friendlier than me.

"My name, it is classified," he said, falling to a knee and taking Karen's hand. "But for you my dearest, I could possibly learn to disobey my orders and tell you."

"Um, y-yeah..." Karen's cheeks were tinted, just a little. Okay, a lot, which is what bothered me. The boy was handsome, I'd give him that.

I took a step toward them and repeated vehemently, "Who are you?"

He was about to plant a light kiss on the back of her hand before jumping away, giggling like an idiot. "I have already told you, my friend, my name is highly classified information. I cannot just _tell_ you."

"I'm not your friend."

"Can we be?"

"I won't ask again," I threatened, fists clenched. He was really making me want to punch him.

"Down, boy," he said, grinning.

"Jack, don't..."

I looked at Karen. Her worried look caused me to loosen my fists, but I was still ready to punch him if need be. "Who the hell are you?"

"Classified," he sang, grinning like a fool.

I took several steps forward."Damn it, I-"

"I HAVE SPOKEN!" he suddenly screamed. He ran off in the direction we had been going, cackling like a madman.

Karen and I stared after him as he disappeared from view.

"Well, that was... interesting."

"He was annoying."

"Come on, Jack, you can't go around punching people just because they're annoying."

"So you think so, too?"

She pursed her lips. "Weeeeell, a little. But seriously, try not to punch people like that, okay?"

"That's not why I-" I stopped and sighed. "Let's just go."

We only walked twenty feet when someone stepped out of the forest ahead of us. A girl, about our age, glanced back and forth, then spotted us.

"Hi there," she greeted us, coming over. Her brown hair, a shade or two darker than Karen's, came down to a little past her shoulders and was pulled back in a short ponytail. She wore a horizontally striped orange and white top, denim shorts, and blue sneakers. Her eyes were a startling shade of lavender. What an unusual eye color. I found her eyes pretty.

"Oh, hi," Karen greeted back.

"Say, have you seen a boy nearby, about yay-tall"-she raised her hand to eye level for her, which came to about my chin- "brown hair, kinda messy?"

"That way," Karen said simply, pointing in the direction the boy had ran off to.

The girl looked that way and turned back. "Thanks a-" The girl's gaze met mine and she stopped short. A smile spread on her face. "Well, hello there, handsome."

"What."

She approached. "Hi, my name's Olivia."

She stared intently at me and I stared back. All was silent for a few moments.

"Well?"

"Well, what?"

"Aren't you going to introduce yourself?" she asked, placing a hand on her hip.

I stared for a long second before speaking. "I'm Jack."

She nodded. "Nice to meet you."

"Yeah. You, too."

Olivia turned to Karen. "And you are?"

"I'm Karen." She stuck out her hand, and Olivia shook it.

"Who was that boy?" I asked.

"Oh, that's Mitchell. He's a friend, and as you probably found out, he's a little... odd."

"That's not quite the word I'd use," I muttered.

"You see," she went on, apparently not having heard me, "we sometimes travel together, and sometimes split up. We met up earlier, but he ran off like an idiot. I've been looking for him lately, I wanted to talk to him."

"Travels... You're a Trainer?" Karen inquired.

"Yes," Olivia said proudly. "You are, too, I presume?"

"Ooh, what kinds of Pokemon do you have?" Karen hopped in place. "I'll show you mine if you show me yours!"

"Alright!"

Karen sent out Bulbasaur, Pikachu, and Pidgey, and Olivia popped open five of her own Pokeballs. In front of her were an Eevee, a Vulpix, a Staryu, a Nidorina and a Butterfree.

Cue the fawning over each other's Pokemon. I sighed as the girls shrieked over how cute Pikachu was or how adorable Eevee was or how huggable Vulpix was. I turned and set back off down the path towards Mt. Moon.

"Jack, wait! Where are you going?"

* * *

Olivia decided to tag along with us, as she said she was heading in the same direction. So, for the rest of the afternoon, Karen and Olivia talked and made jokes like they were the best of friends after only having just met.

"...And then he says, 'That's a Caterpie'!"

Karen burst into laughter at the punchline of Olivia's joke, if you could call it that.

Olivia looked at me. "Oh, come on, Jack, not even a smile?"

I kept my stare on the mountain in the distance.

Olivia sighed, defeated. "He's a tough crowd, ain't he?"

"You don't know the half of it."

"I know!" Olivia cried, pumping her fists in the air. "I _will _make you smile, Jack, if it's the last thing I do!"

* * *

For the rest of the day, Olivia made countless jokes, none of which were really funny, in her determined attempt to make me smile.

"What do Rattata and Gengar have in common?"

I said nothing.

"They both instill fear!"

Of course, she was referring to that one strategy involving Rattata. I made a mental note to try that with my Rattata if I ever got my hands on a Focus Sash.

I glanced sideways at Olivia's hopeful look, then at Karen, who was giggling, before looking away. Olivia deflated.

"He sure is one tough nut to crack."

"Tell me about it."

Olivia kept on making her jokes until darkness fell and we set up camp. When I brought out my Pokemon, Olivia froze, gawking at Rattata. She suddenly shrieked and scooped him up, squeezing him. "Oh, my God, Jack! Why didn't you tell me you had a shiny Rattata?"

Rattata squeaked in protest before he squirmed out of her grasp and hopped onto my shoulder, watching her warily.

"Didn't seem important," I spoke for the first time since that afternoon.

"But it is! Do you know how _rare_ shiny Pokemon are?"

"Yes."

"Oh, you are _so _lucky."

Finally, after all of her hyper behavior, an hour later she seemed to have calmed down while we gathered around the fire.

"So Olivia," Karen said, "how do you know Mitchell?"

Olivia was silent, blinking a few times, seemingly out of sleepiness. Couldn't really blame her, I was feeling drowsy myself. That's what a warm fire does to you.

"We've been friends for years, since we were little." She smiled fondly. "We met in a school yard in Viridian City. I thought he was a little weird, but he seemed like a nice kid. He wanted to be friends, but I didn't want to. But he kept pestering me until I finally gave in and said I'd be his friend. He was so happy." Her smile faded. "I later found out that he didn't have many friends, because he was a little... eccentric. He was bullied a lot, and I always ended up defending him. I guess that's how we came to be so close."

"So you like him," Karen said blatantly.

I raised an eyebrow at her bluntness, and Olivia reddened.

"It's not at all like that, believe me. We're friends, always have been, always will be."

"I know, I know, I'm just kidding. So where were you heading?"

"Oh, Mitchell wanted to go to Mt. Moon. He said he was going there when he ran off, so I'm going to meet up with him. Where are you going?"

"To Cerulean City. We're going to challenge the Gym Leader for a badge. We already beat Brock, Pewter's Gym Leader."

"Wow, you did?" Olivia seemed impressed. "You must be strong, I heard he's tough."

"He is," I said. "Took me two weeks to beat him."

"Wow, two weeks..."

We talked for a little longer-well, Karen and Olivia talked, I just listened-and we told each other about us. Olivia was from a rather large family in Viridian. She lived with her parents, a younger sister, her grandparents, and her uncle and aunt, and a couple of cousins. Everyone, except her sister, had Pokemon. When her parents gave her her starter, Eevee, she left her home to begin her journey, along with Mitchell.

"How long ago did you leave?" Karen asked.

"About a month," she responded.

"We left Pallet Town about a month ago, too! But we never saw you when we passed through Viridian."

"It is a pretty big city," Olivia said.

"Plus, we were only there for less than a day," I added.

"That's right." Karen nodded. "Well, at least we met now, right?"

"Right," Olivia replied, smiling. She turned to me. "Aren't you glad we met, too?"

"Sure."

* * *

Olivia stayed with us until the following evening, when she said that she was splitting away because she wanted to get to Mt. Moon as quickly as she could.

"You see, I don't want to leave Mitchell alone for too long there. God knows what he would do."

"Alright. Take care of yourself, Olivia," Karen said.

"You, too, Karen."

"Do you think we'll see you again?"

"I sure hope so." She flashed me a smile and I stared dispassionately. "I'm going to Cerulean City, so we might meet up. See you there, Jack." She winked before turning and walking off.

"She's nice."

"Sure is," I deadpanned.

* * *

"Olivia's eyes sure were weird. I've never seen eyes that color!"

"Neither have I."

"They were, like, purple! That's awesome!"

"Yep."

"Oh, and did you see her Eevee? It was so _cute_!"

"Sure was."

"You hardly spoke to her, Jack. How come?"

My face felt just a little hotter. I'm not stupid, I saw how "friendly" Olivia was toward me. I shrugged.

"What'd you think of her?" Karen suddenly asked.

I was silent, thinking over my answer. No one's ever acted like that with me before. But that doesn't mean I can't see it. The smiles, the looks, the _winks_... It left me a little... confused. Confused over how to respond, how to act, what to say. So, I just resorted to what I usually resorted to-looking as if I didn't care. It worked so far. But, judging by how Karen was watching me, my expressionless demeanor was having less of an effect on her. So, to cover up my confusion, I did what I thought to be the best course of action.

I shrugged again.

"Oh, come on. You gotta have more than that! She seemed to really like you."

_Yeah, I could tell_. "She's... okay."

Karen nodded satisfied. "See, that wasn't so hard!"

I grunted.

"You bastard!" someone screamed from our right.

"That's what you get for last time, you little bitch!"

"What's going on?" Karen asked, worried.

"Doesn't sound good." I took off in the direction of the shouts, Karen right behind.

I charged through the brush and broke through to a copse of trees. I ran past them and to a creek that gurgled through a small field. By the edge of the water was a small campsite-a tent and a fire pit. But that wasn't what drew my attention.

On my side of the creek were two people fighting. One was a boy just older than me, and the other a very familiar girl.

"Miranda!" Karen shouted.

Miranda whipped her head toward us, eyes widening, before the boy kicked her, sending her sprawling to the ground. I got a look at his face and rage boiled up in me.

It was that _damn _Bug Maniac from Viridian Forest, almost a month ago. There's no way I could forget the bastard that attacked us for our Pokemon. He looked at us and groaned.

"You again!"

He said no more as I ran up and slammed my fist into his face so hard my hand smarted from the blow and blood spurted from his mouth, flecking my knuckles with red. He cried out, reeling away as I went over to Miranda.

"Are you alright?" I asked, extending my hand to her.

She took it."Yeah."

I pulled her up as the Bug Maniac came back, a hand on his mouth. "You'll pay for that, you bastard."

"Bring it," Miranda snarled.

"Get them!" the Bug Catcher shouted, pointing at us.

His Pokemon, which I hadn't noticed until now, came at us. He had gotten new Pokemon since I had last encountered him. In addition to his Beedrill and Pinsir, he now had a Scyther and a Venonat. I briefly wondered when he had gotten the Pokemon before I had to dodge a swipe from Scyther's blade. I released Charmander to fight, and two figures suddenly shot out from the woodwork. A Scyther and a Haunter.

"Those yours?" I asked Miranda.

She nodded, smirking at the Bug Maniac.

Her Scyther went straight for the Bug Maniac's as it charged. The two Pokemon then engaged in a fast, furious, frenetic close quarters battle, slashing at each other with their arm blades, trying to gain the upper hand on each other. But is was obvious that Miranda's Scyther already had the upper hand in this fight, being bigger and seeming far more experienced than his opponent.

Haunter went at the Maniac's Venonat, who fired a Psybeam at the Ghost. Haunter easily flew to the side, the multi-colored beam flying past, and retaliated with his own attack, Psychic. His eyes glowed blue, his disembodied hands twirled, and the Venonat was sent flying back by the unseen force of the attack.

"Eyes here, asshole!"

The Maniac's fist crashed into my jaw. I stumbled away, my vision swimming. I shook my head and faced him, hand holding my jaw.

"That was for last time. And this is for interrupting!" He came to punch me again.

I moved into his attack, shoving his arm away and ramming a fist into his stomach. He doubled over and suddenly tackled me to the ground. He pulled back and punched at me, but I jerked my head to the side, leaving his fist to hit the grass beside my head. He reared back for another try but I delivered a quick jab to his face and then a stronger punch. His head snapped back and I tried to kick him off, but he was too heavy. His hand suddenly came down and wrapped around my throat. I grit my teeth as my oxygen was cut off, trying desperately to pry his finger away. My vision started to get dark around the edges. He was smirking triumphantly. Seeing that, I just wanted to wipe it off with my fist. I tried doing just that, but simply pushed it away and raised his own.

Just then, Miranda came over and kicked his arm that was choking me, releasing his hold. Then, with the other leg, she kicked him in the chest. The Bug Maniac sprawled to the ground as I backed away, air flooding into my lungs.

"You okay?" Miranda asked as I stood.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I coughed, rubbing my throat.

I glanced over at the dueling Scyther. Miranda's was clearly winning. I managed to catch what they were doing for just a second. Miranda's Scyther feinted, then dashed in and slashed at the other Scyther, slicing off one of the spikes on the smaller Bug's legs. It shrieked as blood spurted and Miranda's Scyther slammed the dull end of its arm blade, knocking it out.

The Bug Maniac got back on his feet, cursing, before recalling his injured Pokemon. I ran forward and he swung at me. I ducked, came in closer, and kneed him as viciously as I could in his thigh. He shrieked and fell to one knee. My hatred and rage had turned my vision red, and I didn't feel completely in control as I grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him in closer. I raised my fist, my jaw clenched so hard I was certain it would hurt like hell later.

"Beedrill!" he shouted right before I punched him.

I pulled back to punch him again when a shout of pain cut through the red haze that had clouded over my sight and my mind. I turned to see Miranda on the grass, pinned down by the Beedrill, who had one of its huge stingers at her throat.

The Bug Maniac pulled something of his pocket and flicked his wrist. A blade popped out. He stood, favoring his left leg and with a hand over his bleeding mouth, pointing the switchblade at me. "Move and both of you get it."

"You bastard," Miranda snarled, but mindful of the stinger.

I eyed the blade, wondering whether there was some way I could break this stalemate without Miranda getting hurt. I looked over at Miranda. She wasn't scared. She was more pissed off than anything else. I was, too. First this asshole tries to steal our Pokemon, than he attacks my friend? He was going to pay for that. I turned to the Bug Maniac and froze.

Karen was coming up behind him.

_What the hell is she doing?_

I wracked my brain trying to figure out how to tell her to back off without alerting the Bug Maniac, but I wasn't able to. Somehow, Karen came up behind him, pulled her leg back, and kicked as hard as she could where it would hurt him the most.

The Bug Maniac eyes bulged and he yelped, dropping the switchblade. His hands went to his groin and he fell to his knees, whimpering. I quickly snatched up the blade and tossed it into the creek, where it was swept away. I turned back to command Charmander to attack the Beedrill and the Pinsir that had joined it, but Miranda beat me to it. She dropped a Pokeball and it snapped open. A yellow, humanoid Pokemon with a thin mustache came forth, its thick tail swishing as Miranda gave a command.

"Psychic!"

The Bugs were too surprised to react and were blown away by the Kadabra's attack. They were out cold in one hit. That Kadabra was strong.

I turned back to the gaping Bug Maniac. His wide eyes went to me and I glared at him. I wanted so bad to kick him in the face. I was contemplating doing so, and was just about to do it when Miranda ran up and did it. Blood flew from his broken nose and he fell to the grass.

"Asshole," Miranda spat. She kicked his stomach for good measure.

"Jack, are you okay?" Karen asked, concerned. "What the hell were you thinking, just running in like that?"

I said nothing, simply rubbing my jaw where the Bug Maniac managed to hit. I could tell it was going to bruise pretty badly. "You okay, Miranda?"

"I am now."

I raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"It's kinda a long story."

"We have time."

She pursed her lips, thinking. "Alright. But let's do it somewhere else. Don't want this guy waking up while we're still nearby."

* * *

We sat around a fire that night by the same creek in another field. I briefly wondered just how long the creek was. We had traveled the rest of the day and set up camp here when it began to turn dark. As promised, Miranda explained to us what happened.

"How come you were out here? What happened with your mother?" Karen asked her.

Miranda took a while to respond. "She's better now. Much better."

"That's a relief."

I nodded.

"As for your other question, I sometimes like to go out alone, isolate myself, and just enjoy the wonders of nature. Even while traveling around, I usually find someplace to hunker down."

"Okay."

Miranda turned to me, her bright lime green eyes glinting the the firelight. "Thanks for the help, Jack."

"Anytime. But why did that asshole attack you?"

Her expression darkened. "You see, for over a week now, I had the feeling that I was being watched. I had no idea who it could be, but I was still on alert. Today, though, I let my guard down, thinking that whoever it was would probably not do anything. He didn't over the week-and-a-half he watched me." She sighed. "That was a mistake. His Beedril came out of nowhere and attacked. I didn't have my Pokeballs with me, so I couldn't drive it off. Then he himself attacked me. I managed to snatch up a Pokeball when our fight came near to my campsite, but I wasn't able to find an opening to send Kadabra out. And that's about when you showed up, Jack."

"So he attacked you to get you back for what happened in Viridian Forest?"

"Pretty much, yeah."

"Congratulations, Jack," Karen chirped, nudging me with an elbow, "you saved the day!"

"That he did," Miranda said, laughing. "But, are you okay, Jack? He got you pretty good there, a couple of times."

"It'll bruise, but I'm fine," I responded, rubbing my jaw.

"So, Miranda, you said that you didn't have your Pokemon with you, so how come your Scyther and Haunter were already out?" Karen asked.

"You see, some time ago I got a new Pokemon. He still needs some getting used to me, and is really timid. Today, he ran off into the forest, and I sent Scyther and Haunter to find him."

"Did they?"

"No, not yet." Miranda frowned, her brow creasing in concern. "They're still looking for him now."

"I hope they find him."

"Yeah..."

The soft silence was filled by the sounds of the fire crackling.

"It's getting late," Karen said, "we should get to sleep."

Miranda nodded, entering her tent and Karen and I slipped into our sleeping bags.


	11. A Change and a Loss

Chapter 11-A Change and a Loss

April Fool's, guys. For those of you that read the chapter that was previously here, I'm sorry to have waster your time with that one. Here's the real chapter. If you read the April Fool's chapter, then you can just skip ahead. It's the same up until a certain point. I'll be posting the April Fool's chapter separately, so if you wanna see it, then you can. But anyway...

* * *

The sun shone in my eyes, rousing me. I let out a breath and opened them. The sky was overcast, with a few patched where the clouds didn't meet, allowing the sun to shine through. I blinked and rubbed my eyes before sitting up, letting out a big yawn. I noticed that Miranda's small, one-person tent was gone, and so was she. A soft rustling got my attention. On my other side was a piece of paper, held down with a rock. I took the paper and read it.

_I'm gonna get going now, guys. Sorry, but I have to find my Pokemon. Maybe we'll meet up later? Take care. _

_ -Miranda_

"Wonder what Pokemon it was..."

Karen stirred, yawned and sat up.

"Well, good morning, Sleeping Beauty."

"Ha, ha, very funny." She glanced around groggily. "Where's Miranda?"

I handed her the sheet of paper. She quickly read it over before handing it back. "Wonder what Pokemon it was. She never did tell us, did she?"

"Nope."

"Well, there's not much use hanging around here. Let's get on going."

"I'm usually the one to say that."

"Well, I'm just that awesome."

* * *

Darkness. Tiny pinpricks of light began to dot his vision, chasing away the dark. All he could see was a blend of colors, consisting mostly of browns. He blinked slowly once, twice, clearing his vision. The endless blurring of colors faded into recognizable objects-a table, two chairs, a bare shelf on the opposite wall, and a mini fridge. He moved his head and groaned at the sharp pain in his neck. He seemed to have slept all twisted. He slowly sat up, his head swimming and his vision blurring again. He glanced around at the rest of the small cabin. Well, it was more of a shack, really.

He shakily stood and grabbed onto the bars of the cage he was in to steady himself. He glanced around again when he noticed that he was alone.

"Where'd they go?" he mumbled. As he spoke his voice cracked slightly, emphasizing the thirst he felt.

He spotted a bottle of water on the table, and wondered how he hadn't seen it before. His throat suddenly felt much dryer than before as he stared at the bottle. He looked around for anything he could use to bring the water bottle closer to him. He saw a wire hanger on the floor some distance from the bars.

"How convenient."

He crouched down and reached an arm past the bars to get the hanger. He couldn't quite reach it, so he shifted himself and reached as far as he could. His fingers brushed against it. He reached just a little farther and managed to pull the hanger over to him. He stood up, undoing it and straightening it as much as possible. When he was satisfied with it, he extended his arm between the bars and reached for the bottle with the hanger's hook end. Fortunately, the table wasn't too far away. He managed to hook onto the bottle and pull if off. It tumbled to the floor and he rolled it over to the cage. He instantly scooped it up and frantically twisted the cap off. He brought the bottle to his parched lips and drank.

The cool liquid rushed down his dry throat, soothing it to a degree he never would have imagined possible. Within seconds, all of the water was gone. He frowned at the empty bottle before tossing it aside.

"That hits the spot," he muttered.

The last time he had had anything to drink was the night before, and if the sunlight streaming in through the window was any indication, it was well into the afternoon. He sighed and slumped to the floor. At least one of the two had been merciful enough to give him a blanket, which he had folded up and now rested his head upon. He gingerly probed his lip as hr stared at the ceiling. The swelling brought on by being split was gone for the most part, but it still hurt like hell, especially whenever his captors had thrown together a sandwich, tossed at him and he at it. A loud rumbling suddenly erupted. He looked down at his stomach disdainfully sighed again. _What I wouldn't give for a hamburger right about now._

He tried to think about how long he had been stuck here. All the days had blended together, one seeming no more different than the rest, so he wasn't really sure, but... A week, give or take.

"What do they want from me?"

In the week he had been held captive, the two hadn't said anything about why they kept him here. Although, thinking back, he could vaguely remember the one that had attacked him saying something about finding some "little brats" for payback. But he had been half asleep, so he had just chalked it up to his imagination. He wondered who those brats were, if he had heard correctly.

Suddenly, he remembered the one that hit him had been rolling a Pokeball in his hand, muttering that the Pokemon inside would have its chance at payback, too. That got him thinking about his own Pokeballs. The two had taken them and left them in a bowl that was in plain sight on the bookshelf that stood on the other side of the shack. There was no way he could get to them, no matter how hard he tried. Right now, his mind was too muddled by hunger to think clearly and formulate any plan for escape.

With little else to do, Gary turned on his side and tried to sleep some more.

* * *

The path wound on through Route 3, and it began to be more rocky the further we went. Occasionally, a boulder would dot the side of the road. My foot kicked a stray rock again, sending it rolling into a bush. I glanced over as a Rattata poked its head out, chittered at me for disturbing me, and darted off. My eyes then went to Karen as she walked beside me, eating a Pecha berry bigger than my fist. My gaze went to the fruit and I began to wonder just how the hell a berry could get that big.

Karen noticed me staring at the berry. "What's wrong? You want some?"

"No."

"That's a lie."

"It's the truth."

"You barely ate anything this morning!"

"I wasn't hungry."

"Well you gotta eat _something_."

"But I'm not hungry."

"Here, take a bite if you want," she said, holding the berry out.

"I don't want to."

Karen sighed, lowering the fruit. "Why must you be so difficult, Jack?"

"Why must you be so stubborn, Karen?" I retorted.

We mock-glared at one another before laughing.

"But seriously, take a bite," Karen said when her laughter died down.

"We just went through this," I sighed.

"Alright, fine," she said, pouting, "Don't take a bite. But if you starve to death, it wasn't my fault."

"Always so dramatic," I muttered.

"What was that?"

"I didn't say anything."

"Yeah, you did."

"Nope."

Karen narrowed her eyes. "I'm watching you."

"How terrifying."

She huffed at my deadpan sarcasm before turning back down the path and taking another bite of the berry.

Not even five minutes later, "Just take a bite."

My eye twitched. "We've been through this."

"Just take one little, itty-bitty bite. Please?"

I glanced at her.

That was a mistake.

Her lower lip was stuck out and trembling, and her eyes were wide and round. Any resistance I had crumbled right then and there.

"Fine," I snapped, snatching the berry she held out and bit into it. My teeth sank into it and juice spurted into my mouth. I chewed, swallowed, and stared at the berry. _My God, that was delicious. _I noticed Karen watching me expectantly. I chomped once more, taking away almost half of it, before giving it back.

"Hey!"

"You said I could have some."

"I said you could have a little, itty-bitty bite, not the whole damn thing!"

"That was a little itty-bitty bite."

"You call this 'itty-bitty'?" She shoved the Pecha berry in my face and I bit it once more, grinning.

"Hey!"

* * *

The two men in black watched the two kids as they bickered over a Pecha berry. The girl in the white hate kept offering it to him and the boy with the red cap kept refusing. Finally, the boy gave in and ate almost half of the enormous berry.

One of the two men narrowed his eyes in contempt of the boy. The little shit was going to pay. When he had kicked his and his partner's asses almost a month ago, they went back to their base, humiliated, and were promptly put on shit patrol for failing such a simple mission. All of the other grunts would taunt and jeer at them for being beat up by a kid.

But then he found a chance to to do something about the kid. They had followed the kids to make sure they were secluded before moving in. But then they had come across that other spikey-haired little shit, and it made it all the sweeter when they ambushed him and locked him up. First, they would take care of these two, then they would figure out what to do with the other one. With his newly acquired Moon Stone, he beefed up one of his Pokemon, and with it, he would take his vengeance.

That Pokemon stood by him. The horned behemoth growled softly, claws twitching in anticipation, long tail swishing. The grunt looked it over proudly, smirking.

"Um, Andrew, I don't think this is such a good idea," his partner whispered from behind him.

"Shut the fuck up, Ryan," Andrew growled, "I know what I'm doing."

Ryan closed his mouth and shrank back a bit.

Andrew turned back to the two kids as they started walking again. He patted his Pokemon's thick hide and said two words.

"Kill them."

* * *

"I tell him to get a tiny bite, and what does he do? He eats half of it," Karen grumbled as she walked just ahead of me.

We slowed down when we felt the earth rumble beneath us and stopped when an ungodly roar erupted from the trees. Our heads snapped to the left just as a huge creature burst forth, knocking over two trees.

"What the hell?" Karen shouted.

I suddenly noticed the violet Pokemon was coming straight for us.

"Karen, move!"

She seemed rooted to the spot in fear, so I tackled her to the ground. The Pokemon barreled past, narrowly avoiding stepping on us with one of its huge feet. I stood, helping Karen to her feet as the Pokemon stopped and turned to us. It was well over seven feet tall. It stood on two feet and was purple all over, with a dark green inside its large ears. Spikes ran up its back and my eyes were drawn to the enormous horn on its forehead. It growled, baring its sharp teeth, one of which protruded from its mouth, even when it was closed. I knew of the Pokemon, but had never actually seen one. I was in awe of the towering behemoth.

The Nidoking growled once more before opening it jaws, a yellow-orange ball of energy forming.

My eyes widened in shock and the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end.

"Oh my God, it's gonna...!" Karen cried.

I grabbed her hand and ran just as the ball shot outward in a powerful beam. The ground behind us exploded and we stumbled, but regained our footing and took cover behind a tree

"Did it just use Hyper Beam?" Karen asked, eyes wide.

"Yeah, I think so," I replied.

"Why did it attack us?"

"I don't-"

The tree was suddenly yanked straight out of the ground and tossed aside like a stick. I shoved Karen away as the Nidoking swiped a claw down. I jumped back and promptly stumbled and fell back. The Nidoking yanked its claw out of the grass and came after me, repeatedly slashing down at me. I frantically crawled backward, each of its attacks just missing me. Finally, as a final effort to get me, it descended, head down. Another jump back saved me as the Nidoking's horn embedded itself in the ground between my splayed legs.

I scrambled to my feet and sprinted away, onto the rocky path. The Nidoking shoved aside two trees and opened its mouth again. The ball of energy formed and it fired, and the Hyper Beam tore up the ground right behind me. I stumbled and the Pokemon fired again. I threw myself to the dirt and the beam passed overhead. I jumped back up and warily watched the Pokemon. It seemed exhausted, panting and bent over, supporting itself with a single hand on the ground. I quickly thought over my options. Nidoking were know for being territorial, which could explain why this one attacked. But looking at it, it had this look in its eye that suggested it wasn't just trying to drive us away. It must have come after Karen and I for a reason. So running away wouldn't do any good, it would only chase after us.

That left one option: we were going to have to fight.

I brought out my Pokemon as the Nidoking managed to catch its breath and reared back up. It opened its mouth to fire Hyper Beam again and I commanded Charmander to use Ember. The fireballs-which were now about as big as both of my fists together-flew into the Poison Pokemon's mouth. The Nidoking snapped its jaws closed and began hacking. It roared its anger and charged, head down. We jumped out of the way as it ran past and its horn went straight into a tree. It struggled to free its deeply embedded horn, then, with a snarl, clamped onto the trunk, and _pulled_. The entire tree, taller than the Nidoking, came up out of the soil, roots and all. My mouth fell open when, in a display of enormous strength, the Nidoking pulled the tree down around its horn and it snapped right in half. It then whirled and tossed the two pieces of it at us. I only barely managed to duck in time and the pieces crashed into the forest.

Karen ran up next to me, looking panicked. "Jack, recall your Pokemon! Let's get out of here!"

"I don't think we'll be able to." I quickly explained my reasoning to her.

She thought it over for a second before nodding, jaw set. "Makes sense. Well, then..." She brought out her own Pokemon. "Let's do this, Jack."

The Nidoking had bent over again, panting. Now, he stood upright, opened its jaws and a stream of flamed erupted forth.

"Oh crap!"

Karen and I jumped out of the way of the flames.

"It knows _Flamethrower_!" Karen shouted

The Nidoking reared back, mouth open, and spewed the flames at us again.

"Thundershock!"

Electricity sparked forward from Rattata and our Pikachu, meeting the flamethrower head on. The fire and electricity collided, halting each other's advances. We were at a standstill, neither one wanting to back down and the Nidoking obviously wanting to press forward.

"Jack, what do we do?" Karen had to shout to be hear over the crackling of the elemental attacks.

My eyes flitted over the scene. Rattata seemed to be tiring keeping up the Thundershock, while our Pikahcu seemed just fine. I figured it had something to do with Rattata some being the same type as the attack. Nidoking seemed to be tiring also. I could only wonder how it was able to fire off so many Hyper Beams so quickly, and why it only now started to seem exhausted. Then my eyes snapped to the Pokemon's attack's point of collision. The electricity was slowly snaking its way up the stream of flames, heading toward the Nidoking.

"There!" I said, pointing.

Karen must have seen it, too, because we both encourage our Pokemon to push harder. Slowly, the Thundershock overcame the Flamethrower, and the electricity coursed up to the Nidoking, and in a few seconds made contact. The large Pokemon immediately ceased its attack and began convulsing. The muscle spasms faded after a few seconds, and while I knew Electric attacks wouldn't hurt the dual Poison-Ground-type, maybe they could slow it down.

"Pikachu, Thundershock!" I commanded when the Nidoking began to charge again. My Pikachu's cheeks sparked and a bolt of electricity flew at the Poison Pokemon. It halted and convulsed, and I saw my chance.

"Rattata, Charmander, Iron Tail!"

My Pokemon rushed forward and slammed their tails into the Nidoking with enough force to knock it down. The Nidoking scrambled up and this time Karen's Pikachu attacked. Again, the Nidoking stopped, overcome with muscle spasms, leaving open for a triple Iron Tail from my Pokemon. This time, though, all that it did was send the Nidoking stumbling. It whirled, the telltale ball of energy forming in its mouth.

"Pidgey, Gust!" Karen cried.

Pidgey began vigorously flapping her wings, kicking up a sizable whirlwind. The Nidoking roared, bringing up an arm over its face. I was about to tell Karen to have Pidgey stop because it didn't seem to do anything, but then the Nidoking uncovered its face and fire Hyper Beam at the little bird. The powerful attack slammed into her, knocking her out of the air.

"Pidgey!" Karen screamed. She ran over to where the bird fell at the base of a tree and picked her up. "Pidgey, are you okay?"

The ground suddenly exploded in front me and our Pikachu, and for several terrifying seconds I couldn't see or hear anything. All that took over my vision was white, and there was ringing in my ears. I breath when they faded and I could see and hear properly. But then I jerked in shock when I saw where I was-ten feet away from where I had been standing, a large crater on the ground in front of that spot.

And both of our Pikachu unmoving some distance away from it.

"Pikachu!" Karen and I shouted at the same time.

I grit my teeth, pushing myself up to my knees. I suddenly noticed Charmander at my side. The Nidoking snarled, panting, but otherwise seeming unharmed. I looked down at my starter when I heard him give a snarl of his own.

"Charmander?"

I only watched in surprise when he took off for the Nidoking.

"Charmander, no!"

The Nidoking spit out Flamethrower at my starter, completely enveloping him in flames, but as I expected, Charmander didn't falter. In fact, he only seemed to move faster. The Nidoking then slashed at him with a claw, but Charmander darted out of the way. He moved in and slashed with Metal Claw at the large Pokemon's leg, causing it to fall to a knee. Charmander then fired Ember at its face, causing the Poison Pokemon to howl in pain. As it clawed at its face to rid itself of the pain, Charmander leaped and slammed Iron Tail across its face. The Nidoking grunted and fell to all fours, and Charmander rushed in for another Iron Tail. But then the Nidoking lashed out with an arm, hitting Charmander and sending him flying.

"Charmander!" I screamed.

I couldn't be too sure, but it sounded like the Nidoking _purred. _It stood up, bared its teeth at me, and took only a step before vines suddenly ensnared its arms. It roared in anger as it whirled on its new aggressor. Bulbasaur stood at Karen's feet, the vines extending from the bulb on her back, as her Trainer held Pidgey in her arms. She recalled the bird to her Pokeball.

"Bulbasaur!"

Shocking the both of us, a third vine shot out, whipping at the Nidoking. It roared at the lashes before yanking at the vines, pulling Bulbasaur over to it. She flew through the air and landed on the Nidoking's back. She didn't waste any more time unraveling her vines and whipping the Nidoking again.

"That's it Bulbasaur, keep at it!" Karen cheered, picking up her injured Pikachu and recalling her to her Pokeball. I recalled Pikachu and was about to recall Charmander when Bulbasaur cried out in surprise. The Nidoking had reached back and grabbed her by the bulb, throwing her. The Grass-type hit a tree and fell to the grass.

"No, Bulbasaur!"

The Nidoking turned to me, roared, and charged. I ran forward and dove beneath its arm as it slashed at me. I rolled away and to my feet as the Nidoking whirled. I sprinted away as it fire Hyper Beam-faster than before-and stumbled when the path behind me blew up. I picked up a thick branch-the remains of one of the many trees destroyed so far-and ran at the Pokemon, rolling underneath its arm as it swiped at me again. I ran up its back and jumped, bringing the branch high over my head. I swung it down on the Nidoking's head, dazing it some what. The branch shattered, and a sharp prick in my palm told me that I now had a splinted. I didn't have time to think about it, though, because the Nidoking began trying to shake me off. I gripped its large ears to stay on and it began running.

As it ran it bucked, trying to get me off its back. I held on for dear life, though, afraid that if I fell I would get trampled beneath its feet. I spotted one of the boulders that had began dotting the nearby, and had an idea. I pulled on the Nidoking's ears, hoping to get it to go in that direction. Amazingly, it worked. It thundered toward the boulder and I braced myself.

The impact was teeth-rattling.

The Nidoking let out a pained bellow as its horn went deep into the rock, and the force of the collision sent me tumbling to ground, seven feet below. The wind was knocked out of me. Regardless, I stood and put some distance between. I called Rattata over as the Nidoking pulled its horn out.

"Iron Tail!"

Rattata charged and leaped, but to my shock was swatted away by the Nidoking's arm. Rattata bounced in the road and stopped.

"Rattata!"

The Nidoking groaned, a hand to its head. It shook its head, large ears flopping, before focusing on me. It stepped toward me and I backpedaled. It fire Flamethrower and I covered my face, expecting to feel flames consuming me. Suddenly, a stream of fireballs intercepted the Flamethrower. I looked down to see Charmander, battered and bruised, at my side. For some reason, I chose that moment to notice that he had grown, as now came to about mid-thigh. I then noticed that the flame on the end of his tail was much bigger now, and had turned blue. He was about a yard away, but I could still feel an incredible heat emanating off him. I decided it could only be one thing-Charmander's ability, Blaze, had kicked in.

The Nidoking stopped its attack, snarling at my starter, who snarled right back. Charmander opened his mouth, presumably to use Ember again, but what came out instead was steady jet of flame. My eyes widened. The Flamethrower hit the Nidoking, forcing it back. Apparently, Charmander's Flamethrower was much stronger than the Nidoking's. Then the most amazing thing happened.

Charmander began to glow.

I watched in awe as a soft, white light enveloped Charmander. The Nidoking had pulled back to slash but froze, letting its arm fall to its side. It stared at Charmander, eyes unfocused. I remembered that that had happened to Charmander when Brock's Geodude evolved. _That can't be a coincidence._

Charmander was growing, changing shape. The light wasn't bright enough to completely obscure my view of my starter, and I could see his features shifting. He grew until he came to about my midsection. A small horn rose up from the back of his head. His arms, legs, and tail grew longer. He stopped changing and the light faded, revealing a new Pokemon in Charmander's place.

Charmeleon snarled at the Nidoking, who seemed to have recovered from its trance. My evolved starter's Blaze was still in effect, and he fired Flamethrower again. This time, though, it was much larger than the Nidoking's ever was, and was a deep blue hue. The Poison Pokemon bellowed as it was scorched by the Fire attack and took several steps back. Charmeleon pressed his advantage and ran forward. He leaped and slammed Iron Tail into the Nidoking's face. The Nidoking bellowed again and fell down. Charmeleon back away as the Drill Pokemon pushed itself on all fours. It fired Hyper Beam and Charmeleon went with Flamethrower again. The two powerful attacks collided, fought for an advantage, and blew up. I was blown back by the force of the explosion.

I sat up, wiping at the bit of blood that appeared on my mouth that apparently meant I bit my lip. Charmeleon was unconscious was distance away, and the Nidoking was still standing. It took a step and collapsed onto its knees. Breathing hard, I shakily got to my feet. There was a squeak and I saw Rattata standing, panting. He looked me in the eye and we reached an unspoken agreement.

"Go!"

Rattata, with what seemed to be the last bit of strength he had, sprinted at the weakened Nidoking. It fired Flamethrower and Rattata split into three using Double Team. One of them disintegrated in the flames while the other one disappeared and the real Rattata jumped. His tail took on the metallic glow and he slammed it onto the Nidoking's head, causing it to crash to the ground.

It was unconscious.

Before I was able to revel in the victory, Rattata collapsed, all energy spent. I smiled gently at him as Karen came over.

"Did we do it?" she asked, breathing hard and covered in dirt.

I nodded. "Yeah."

She sighed deeply and brought me into a hug. "I was so scared."

"Me, too."

She looked up at me. "Really? You didn't seem scared."

"Well, I was."

"Dammit!" someone shouted.

Karen and I turned to look at the two men in black that stepped out onto the path. They each had a large red R on their chests.

Team Rocket.

One of them pulled a Pokeball from his belt and recalled the defeated Nidoking. "What good are you if you can't even beat a fucking Rattata?" He put it away and turned to us. I recognized him right away.

He was one of the two that had assaulted Gary on Route 22. The other grunt next to him was the second.

"That Nidoking was yours?" Karen asked him.

"Figure that out by yourself?" he sneered.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "What the hell do you want?"

"Payback." He pulled out a gun and Karen gasped. I move around in front of her and glared at the grunt.

He grinned maliciously, aiming the pistol at us. "We've got your little friend, and now we have you."

My eyes widened. "What did you to to Gary?"

He ignored my question. "Say good night, kiddies." He pulled the trigger, a loud bang tore through Route 3, and a flash of gold swept by in front of me. A spurt of blood splashed on my face as a pained squeak hit my ears. I stared forward, dumbfounded, wondering what the hell had just happened. I looked down and my hear leaped into my throat.

Rattata lay in a spreading pool of blood that stained his golden fur crimson. His breathing was shallow and wet-sounding.

"Rattata!" I dropped to my knees, moisture welling up in my eyes. "Oh my God, are you okay?"

He slowly turned his head to look up at me. He let out a soft squeak, blood trickling from his mouth. His breaths began to come slower and slower.

"Rattata, no! Hang in there!" I couldn't help the tears that began to spill over.

"Would you look at that," the grunt with the gun remarked. "Sacrificing himself to save his master." He sneered. "Let's try this again, shall we?" He raised the pistol again, aiming it at me. Even though I knew there was no way for me to do anything against a gun, I still wracked my brain trying to come up with something.

But as it turned out, I didn't need to do anything, because his partner grabbed his arm, bending it so that the gun pointed up at the sky, and snatched the weapon from his hand.

"Ryan, what the fuck are you doing!" the grunt who held the gun shouted.

"I'm not gonna let you kill these kids, Andrew," his partner, Ryan, said. His tone left no room for the other one to argue. To emphasize his words, he dismantled the gun, sliding the clip out and taking the rest of it apart. He tossed the parts into the bushes, his expression daring his partner to argue.

The other grunt, Andrew, stared at him with barely contained rage. His clenched fists were shaking. He took a menacing step toward Ryan, who flinched but stood his ground, before letting out an enrage shout.

"Well, if I can't kill them... Hypno!" he called.

Heeding his call, a yellow humanoid Pokemon, almost as tall as me, stepped out from the cover of the trees. Its had pointy ears and a collar white fur around its neck. In one hand it held aloft a small pendulum.

I jumped up, instinctively reaching for a Pokeball at my belt before I remembered I hadn't recalled any of my Pokemon yet. I was about to dash forward to attack when Andrew called out a command the Hypno.

"Hypnosis."

The Psychic Pokemon raised the pendulum which began to swing back and forth, almost of its own will. I suddenly a strong force hit my brain, making the world lurch around me and my head snapping back. My eyes momentarily shifted to Karen as she collapsed immediately, eyes closed, and I fell to my knees. Looking back, I don't know how it came about that Karen was put to sleep immediately and yet I clung to consciousness.

As I kneeled there, my vision was going dark around the edges, but I could still see the grunts step toward me.

"What the hell's wrong with him? Shouldn't he be asleep already?"

I couldn't tell who it was that said that. All sound was coming to my ears muddled and I couldn't make much sense of it. Everything then began to swim, and the ground seemed to undulate under me. I brought my hands up, seeing how I seemed to have four arms and the fingers melded together.

Finally, I fell to the dirt face-down. The darkness in my vision spread until I could only see through a small pinpoint. In it, I saw the grunts' boots and the Hypno's feet.

As they spoke their voices faded in and out, so I was only able to catch bits and pieces of it.

"...we do...?"

"Might as... their Poke..."

"...right..."

"... expect what... go unpunished, Ry..."

"... going to... kill kids..."

"...the hell up..."

Then there were the sounds of some sort of commotion, and heat briefly coursed around me.

Darkness.

* * *

"...wake up."

Those words pushed through my sleep-induced haze. I came closer to regaining consciousness but then retreated back into it.

"Please wake up, son. You're safe now."

The word "safe" cut through the haze and with great effort I opened my eyes. Hovering above me was Karen, and next to her, an unfamiliar face. The sun hadn't traveled through the sky much, so I assumed not too much time passed while I was asleep.

"Whass goin' on?" I slurred.

The unfamiliar man sighed. "Thank goodness you finally woke up, son. That Hypnosis put you under pretty deep."

Karen only smiled as single tear slid down her cheek.

The man gently help me sit up. As soon as I did, Karen pulled me into a strong hug. A sob escaped her.

I was going to ask why she was crying when I noticed our Pokemon behind her, and the only strange addition. A Charmeleon. All of the events of that day came flooding back, and ice clenched my heart.

"Rattata! Where is..."

I trailed off when Karen looked down.

"No. No, he's not..."

Karen sobbed and I knew it had to be true. Off to the side was a small, golden-furred form laying on the grass. Without another word I stood and slowly made my way to Rattata. His eyes were closed and he wasn't moving. I fell to my knees and just stared at him, blinking as the tears came.

"Rattata?"

He didn't respond. Thinking back, I never really expected him to. Even so, I still reached out and gently placed a hand on his flank. No movement. Any restraint I had broke away.

I burst into tears.

Karen was suddenly next to me. She wrapped her arms around me and together, we cried.

"He save you, Jack," Karen said through sobs. "He sacrificed himself to save you."

I said nothing, screwing my eyes shut as the tears flowed.

Some time later, I don't know how long, my reservoir of tears dried up and I stopped crying.

"I'm okay," I said softly when I felt I could speak through the lump in my throat.

Karen nodded and broke away, allowing me to stand.

I turned to the unfamiliar man, who had been silent the entire time. He was bald, and had a white moustache. He was dressed in brown pants, a dark red sweater, and, strangely, a white lab coat. His eyes were hidden behind small sunglassed. A large orange canine stood next to him.

"Who are you?" I asked, more harshly than intended.

"My name is Blaine," he answered, raising a placating hand. "I'm truly sorry. I did everything I could."

"Jack, it's true," Karen said, placing a hand on my arm. "He tried to help Rattata."

Looking into her red eyes, my misplaced hostility faded away. "I'm sorry," I said to Blaine.

The old man smiled reassuringly. "It's okay, young man. I myself am no stranger to loss."

"Why are you here?" I asked.

His smile faded. "I was on my way to Cerulean City when I heard the first gunshot. I came as fast as I could and drove those two off. I was just in time, they were going to take your Pokemon."

I wiped my eyes. "They were part of Team Rocket." It wasn't a question.

Blaine seemed surprised. He nodded. "Yes, they are affiliated with Team Rocket. How do you of them?"

"Pewter's Gym Leader told us about them, when two of them attacked the museum about a week ago."

"Ah, yes. I had heard about that," he said, nodding.

"They said they had our friend, Gary," Karen said. "Do you think you can help us find him?"

I didn't feel comfortable asking someone we had just met for a favor, but I thought that it would be almost impossible for Karen and I alone to find Gary.

Blaine put a hand to his chin, thinking. "I may have an idea where he is. There should be a cabin near here. If they were holding keeping your friend prisoner, then that may be where he is."

"Do you know where it is?" I asked.

"Yes," he replied with a nod. "We can go now, if you like."

"Not yet," I said, looking back down at my fallen Pokemon. "We can't just leave him here."

"What do you want to do?" Karen asked.

I felt tears stinging at my eyes again. I blinked to try to get rid of them, but despite my efforts, a single tear made its may down my face. "He needs a proper burial."

"I could help with that, if you'd like," Blaine offered.

I nodded, not facing them. I didn't want them seeing me crying again.

"Arcanine," Blaine said, gesturing to a small field some ways into the forest. The orange canine, a foot taller than me, padded over and began digging.

I watched in silence for a moment before kneeling and gently picking up Rattata's body. The blood caking his fur had dried, and it chafed against my arms as I held him close to me. I couldn't help it, I started crying again. Karen sobbed a few times, too.

I approached the hole Arcanine had dug, my Pokemon following. It was about three feet wide and two deep. Enough for a Pokemon of Rattata's size. The tears almost blinded me as I softly kissed Rattata's head before gently lowering him in. I turned away, closing my eyes as Arcanine began shoveling dirt back inside.

I looked at Pikachu and Charman- Charmeleon. They were both crying, too. It struck me just how _human_ Pokemon sometimes were. I raised my teary gaze to Karen, who watched Arcanine as he finished filling up the hole. She turned to me, crying, and hugged me tight. I wrapped my arms around her as droplets dripped from my chin onto her hat.

After a few moments, I pulled away and approached Rattata's grave.

"We need to mark it, somehow," I whispered, acutely aware of the lump in my throat.

Karen bent down and picked up a rock bigger than my fist. Seeing it, I was reminded of the Pecha berry from earlier.

I was reminded of how such a innocent day had gone so horribly wrong.

Seeing my hesitation, Karen lowered the rock. I stuck my hand out and she gave it to me, smiling sadly. I kneeled down and gently place the rock on the grave. Some of my tears trailed down my face and fell down onto the rock

"Wherever you are now, Rattata, I hope you're okay," I whispered.

I stayed there for several minutes until my tears stopped coming. I stood, wiping my face dry. Karen hugged me again, and again I felt the lump in my throat.

"Thanks, Karen," I muttered.

She pulled away. "Are you okay?"

The wide-eyed look of concern she gave me... At that moment, I knew she would always be there for me. I was so grateful for that right then. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine."

She smiled and I smiled back. I turned to Blaine.

"Let's go fine Gary."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Again, I apologize for the April Fool's joke. I really couldn't resist.


	12. Coping

Chapter 12-Coping

So it's been a month since I updated. Sorry 'bout that. Hope this makes up for it. Oh, one more thing: THE AVENGERS IS IN THEATERS. I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE IT.

* * *

Gary lay on the floor of his cell, staring up at the ceiling. He had his arms behind his head, which rested on the folded up blanket, and he fiddled with a corner of it. He suppressed a yawn and mused at how he could see shapes in the wooden paneling. He yawned again and decided to stop trying to find figures. _I didn't think it was possible to be _this _bored._

He froze when he thought he heard something. He listened more intently and decided that he had heard something. He wasn't sure what, though. Then the sounds of people speaking reached his ears. For a fleeting moment he wondered whether it was someone that had come to help him, but then immediately discarded that idea. It probably just those two guys that had captured him.

Which was why he sat bolt upright when the creaky wooden door burst open, the wood around the doorknob splintering, and a familiar figure wearing a red cap stepped into the shack.

"Jack?"

Gary scrambled to his feet as Jack walked over to the cage. Gary immediately noticed something different about him. He stride was strong, as if he had purpose. He was mostly expressionless, except for a scowl, but his eyes shone with... with something. He couldn't identify what it was. Rage? Sadness? Guilt? All of them? More?

Jack stopped in front of the door to the cage, and just stood there, staring at him. Gary stared back, unnerved. _What the hell is up with him?_

When Jack showed no signs of doing anything, Gary said, "What are you waiting for? Get me out of here!"

Jack's scowled deepened. Without a word he took a Pokeball from the belt, pressed the button and sent out the Pokemon. Gary blinked. He had never seen Jack with this one. It came to about Jack's midsection, and was red in color. Gary's eyes widened when he recognized the Pokemon.

Jack had a Charmeleon.

_Does that mean his Charmander...?_

"Break the lock," Jack commanded. "Metal Claw."

When he spoke, his expression didn't falter. But Gary could detect something in his voice, a trembling. As if he was keeping something from coming out.

The Charmeleon's claws took on a dull glow and the Pokemon slashed at the heavy padlock holding the gate closed. It broke easily under the Fire Pokemon's attack and its pieces clattered to the wooden floor. Gary swung the door open and stretched his arms up above his head.

"About time you guys got here," he said when he noticed Karen at the door. She gazed at him as Jack turned and went to the door. Karen moved aside to allow Jack to exit, his Charmeleon at his heels. Gary stared at the Pokemon for a second before suddenly remembering his. He hurried to the plastic bowl and sure enough the red-and-white spheres were inside.

"Thank God," he said as he picked them up. He placed the three Pokeballs on his belt and with hardly a glance back he left the shack. Standing outside were Jack, Karen, and some bald old guy with a large canine next to him.

"Seriously, what the hell took you guys so long?" Jack glanced at Gary when he spoke. "I've been rotting away in there for over a week. I'm starving, thirsty, and I think I lost fifty pounds. Sheesh, I knew I had a head start on you guys, but come on! It took you a freakin' week to get here? You sure are slow, kiddies. Oh, and is this Charmeleon yours, Jack? I guess that's pretty cool, Charmander evolving and all. Who woulda thought you had it in you to evolve a-"

Gary was abruptly cut off when Jack moved forward and snatched him by the collar of the shirt. Gary yelped as he was pulled in until his face was inches from Jack's.

"Shut. Up."

"What the hell? Let me go!"

"I told you to _shut the hell up_!" Jack screamed.

Gary froze. He couldn't remember hearing Jack screaming like this... ever. His scream held something behind it, something that sounded very much like rage, but also... grief?

Gary wrapped his fingers around Jack's wrist. "Let me go, Jack. What the hell's your problem?"

He noticed Jack's other hand curling into a trembling fist. Gary looked down and saw that the knuckles of the hand that held him were white. He was about to raised a hand to push him away when Karen placed a hand on Jack's shoulder. His head snapped to her and he glared for a moment before his expression softened. The rage that had filled his eyes was gone, leaving only the... sadness. He released Gary and walked away.

Gary straightened his collar. "What's up his butt?" He turned to Karen, who only shook her head. "What?" He glanced at the old guy in the lab coat and saw he, too, shook his head. "What's goin' on?"

"He's dead."

Gary's eyes widened. He turned to Jack, who was about twenty feet away and had his back to them.

"Rattata." At this he glared over his shoulder at Gary. "He's dead."

Gary stared at Jack, jaw slack. "What? Dead?"

Jack didn't respond.

Gary turned to Karen. "Is it true?"

Karen nodded and looked down.

Gary looked back at Jack, whose fist were clenched and white-knuckled.

"Jack, I'm-"

Jack's hand shot to the side, slamming into the cabin's wall and going straight through it like butter. He didn't so much as spare a glance before pulling his scraped hand out and shaking the debris off. "Those Team Rocket bastards did it. They killed Rattata."

Gary stared and wondered how Jack had managed to punch a hole in the wall. What he had said finally registered. "Wait, Team Rocket? What's that?"

"They're a crime syndicate, spread out through the entire region."

Gary turned to the old guy who had spoken. "Never heard of 'em."

"Few have. You are from Pallet Town, correct?"

Gary nodded.

"Team Rocket operates mostly in the central area of the region-Cerulean, Saffron, Vermilion, and Celadon being the areas they are reported the most," he explained. "It's no surprise that a town as small and out of the way as Pallet never received news of them, since Team Rocket hardly ever goes near there."

"Then how come they were in Pewter, Blaine?" Karen asked him.

"I don't know," the old guy-Blaine, apparently-replied, shaking his head.

"Doesn't matter," Jack said softly without turning around.

They turned to him.

"If we ever see them again..." He faced them, and Gary could see his jaw was clenched. "They're gonna pay."

"Don't do anything rash, son," Blaine said. "Those two have the entire organization backing them. If you just attack them blindly, there's a good chance you'll be injured, or worse."

Jack looked away, the shadow of his cap hiding his eyes. Gary frowned. It was really weird, seeing Jack like this. Displaying so much emotion. Weird.

"Are you okay, Jack?" Blaine asked him.

Jack only nodded.

Blaine turned to Karen. "Are you heading for Cerulean City?"

"Yeah."

Gary nodded.

"Well, at the base of Mt. Moon is a Pokemon Center. It'll take a little less than a week to get there, but if you'd like, I could give you a ride there. It'll take about twelve hours, at the least."

"You'd really do that?" Karen asked.

"Of course."

"Well, it beats walking," Gary said. He glanced over at the spot on the wall where Jack had punched through and stepped closer as the others walked back to the road. He peered closer and noticed that the wood seemed a little soft. He prodded it and some of it gave way under his finger. _Must be rotted. No way Jack is _that _strong._ His investigation complete, he went to join the others.

They were standing on the path a few minutes later, Blaine's Arcanine at his side. Gary looked the Pokemon over.

"So, uh, how we gonna do this?" he asked. "'Cause it doesn't seem we'll all fit on your Arcanine."

Blaine smiled and took another Pokeball from his belt. He opened it and the Pokemon inside came out. It stood on four hoofed legs and had a mane of fire. On its head was a single horn. The Rapidash looked at Blaine, whinnying softly.

"You're gonna have some passengers, Rapidash. Be gentle with them, okay?"

The Rapidash neighed, pawing at the dirt.

"Jack, you and Karen will be on Rapidash. Gary, you'll be with me on Arcanine."

"What? Why me?" Gary exclaimed.

"Stop complaining," Jack said as he walked past him toward the horse Pokemon.

"Who's talking to you?" Gary snapped.

"Here, let me help you on," Blaine offered, holding out a hand to Jack.

He ignored it, instead going up to Rapidash and easily hopping up onto its back. He glanced back at Blaine, who seemed surprised.

"Wow, that, that was actually pretty cool," Gary admitted. _Freakin' martial artist, lookin' all cool and stuff._

"I don't think I could do that," Karen said.

"Let me help, then."

Blaine linked his fingers together, giving Karen a foothold, and he boosted her up onto Rapidash's back.

"Are you steady?" Blaine asked them.

"Yep!" Karen chirped.

Blaine nodded and turned to Gary. "Come." He approached his Arcanine who obediently lowered himself down.

Gary reluctantly moved closer. "So, how's this gonna work?" he asked.

Blaine swung a leg over his Arcanine, positioning himself on the Pokemon's back, and turned to Gary. "Climb on behind me."

"Alrighty."

Gary moved closer and mimicked Blaine, sitting behind him. Although he made sure to not be too close. _Kinda weird, if you ask me._

Blaine patted Arcanine's flank and the Fire-type straightened himself up. "You kids ready?" he asked Jack and Karen.

"Ready!" Karen replied, giving a thumbs up while Jack only nodded.

"Alright, Arcanine, Rapidash, let's go."

* * *

I did my best to hold onto Rapidash as he began to gallop along the path, keeping pace with Blaine's Arcanine. It wasn't too difficult, actually. Rapidash was trained really well, and seemed comfortable with passengers on his back. All I had to do was squeeze his flanks with my legs a little and placed my hands on his neck for balance. Fortunately, with Blaine's help, I removed the splinter that had gone into my palm when I struck the Nidoking with that branch. I was shock at how long it was-almost three inches. If it was still in there, I'm sure that the ride would have been a lot more uncomfortable.

At first, I was reluctant to put my hands near that fiery mane, but Blaine reassured me that it wouldn't burn me. At his urging, I had hesitantly laid my hands down and found that he was right. It was warm, but I was otherwise unharmed.

As we rode, I glanced over at Gary sitting behind Blaine. He seemed uncomfortable, constantly fidgeting. I wanted to snap at him to calm the hell down, but stopped myself. I shook my head and stared straight ahead. My anger was boiling, and I wanted nothing more than to take it out on someone. I knew vaguely, in the back of my mind, that that was a childish idea, but I couldn't bring myself to care. My raging grief wouldn't let me.

I tensed when I felt something snake around my stomach. I whirled, somehow expecting those two Team Rocket grunts, but of course saw only Karen instead. She had wrapped her arms around me to keep her balance, apparently, and now rested her head on my back. Listening closely I heard her snoring softly. I smiled gently. Call me weird, but I always did like watching her sleep. She just looked so peaceful. I couldn't really blame her for falling asleep, really. We hadn't had a chance to rest since the Team Rocket grunts attacked us, and I could see the moon was moving lower and lower in the sky. Hell, I could feel my own eyelids drooping.

In fact, now that I started thinking about sleep, it was all I could do to stay awake. I shook my head and ran a hand over my face. _We'll have time for sleep when we get to the Pokemon Center._

* * *

Some six hours later, I noticed Rapidash began to slow down. I cocked my head and looked over at Blaine as his Arcanine slowed to a stop alongside us.

"Forgive me, Jack, but my Pokemon are tired. They must rest."

Both Rapidash and Arcanine were panting, and I could feel the horse Pokemon underneath me was a little damp with a thin sheen of sweat.

"It's alright," I said as I gently shook Karen awake.

"No, thass my bacon..." she mumbled.

I smiled and shook her again. "Karen, wake up."

She groggily lifted her head and looked at me with sleep-addled eyes. "Are we there yet?"

"Nope."

She rubbed here eyes and glanced around. "Why'd we stop?"

"Because Arcanine and Rapidash need to rest," I answered as I slid off of the horse. I extended my hand to her and I helped her down.

Gary hopped off of Arcanine, stretching and giving a big yawn. "Man, I'm beat."

Blaine patted his Arcanine on the flank before recalling him and Rapidash to their Pokeballs.

"Thanks for the ride, Blaine," I said. "I think we can walk from here."

"Are you sure?" he asked.

I nodded. "You saved us several days of travel. We can walk the rest of the way."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, I never agreed to this!" Gary cut in.

My irritation with him hadn't subsided, and I fixed him with a glare.

He stopped and laughed nervously. "Eh, on second thought, I could use the exercise."

Blaine nodded. "Very well. Maybe I will see you kids again, someday." With that, he turned and walked away.

"Well, I'm gonna get going. Gotta beat that Gym Leader in Cerulean before you. See you kiddies later." He ran off in the direction of Mt. Moon, not sparing a glance back.

"How does that boy have that much energy?" Karen asked through a yawn.

"Well, he was all cozy in a cage, so he didn't do much," I said, not bothering to disguise the disdain in my voice.

Karen must have heard it because she gave me a worried look. I turned away and went down the road a ways.

"Let's find somewhere to set up camp."

* * *

As it turned out, Blaine saved use almost four days worth of walking. Those Pokemon of his sure were fast. Three days after we found Gary, we were walking when in the distance I spotted something red.

"Is that...?"

"The Pokemon Center!" Karen cheered, taking hold of my hand. "Come on, Jack, let's hurry over there!"

"I don't really feel like running," I said, pulling my hand back.

"And I don't feel like walking."

"Knock yourself out, then," I said with a dismissive wave.

"Fine!"

She turned and trotted for the Pokemon Center, her bag slapping her hip at each step. I watched her for a moment before walking again.

"Psst! Hey kid!"

I stopped and turned to the tree that had spoken. I stared at it before deciding I just imagined that. I was about to keep walking when someone poked their head out from behind the trunk. The man waved me over. I stared at him before walking again.

"Hey, kid, come over here!"

After what had happened several days ago, I wasn't about to trust any suspicious people, especially one that hid behind a tree and beckoned me over. For all I knew, he was going to ambush me. If so, this was a terrible way to go about it.

"No."

"C'mon, kid, I got something you might like!"

"You come here, then."

He sighed frustratedly before stepping out from behind the tree pulling something along. I cocked my head in surprise. It was an aquarium, with a Magikarp listing inside. By the fact the Pokemon had whiskers the same color as its body, it was male.

The man wheeled the glass aquarium over to me as the Magikarp gaped at me, its mouth working endlessly. "So how'd you like to buy this Magikarp? Only five hundred poké!"

_The old Magikarp scam. _Without a word I turned away and began walking.

"Hey, kid, wait! Please!" the man called, hauling the aquarium as he came after me.

"Not interested."

"How 'bout I lower the price to four-fifty?"

"No."

"Four-twenty-five!"

"No."

"Four hundred!"

"I don't want a Magikarp."

"Come on, kid!" he wailed. "I haven't sold a single Magikarp in a week!"

"Maybe it's because Magikarp are the most common Pokemon in Kanto."

The salesman stopped. "Damn kid and his stupid logic," he grumbled.

"I can hear you," I said with a raised eyebrow.

"Tell ya what, kid. Gimme three-fifty for the Magikarp and I'll throw in some, uh... this Pokeball to put him in!"

I blinked and stared. "Wouldn't you put him in a Pokeball anyway?"

"Well, you see, my customers usually use their own Pokeballs. So, this is a steal! So whaddya say?"

"I say no."

"Oh, come on, kid!" he cried. "Look, what if I give him to ya for three hundred?"

"I'm not paying three hundred poké for a Pokemon I can catch in any river or lake in Kanto."

His jaw fell slack and his eye twitched. "Come on kid, please! Only two hundred and fifty poké!"

My upper lip twitched as I clenched my fist. "If I buy the damn Magikarp, will you leave me the hell alone?"

If the salesman was at all perturbed by my sudden aggression he didn't show it. "Yes!"

I removed my back pack and fished out the envelope of prize money Brock had given me. I took out the money and replaced the envelope in my pack. I slung it back on and thrust the money at the salesmen. "Here's the damn money."

The salesman snatched it out of my hand and tossed me a Pokeball. "Thanks a lot!" he said before running off.

"Hey, what about the aquarium?" I called after him, but he was already gone. I looked into the glass at the Magikarp, who was making odd gasping noises, which seemed to be his way of laughing.

"Gweh heh heh heh!"

"What the hell's so funny?"

* * *

I stepped through the sliding glass door of the Pokemon Center some thirty minutes later and cast about for Karen. She wasn't in the lobby. Knowing her, I went to the cafeteria, and sure enough, she sat at a booth, tearing into a cheeseburger. She spotted me and waved. I sat across from her as she finished her mouthful.

"Hey, what took you so long?" she asked when she had swallowed her bite of cheeseburger.

"I came across a Magikarp salesman," I answered as she took a sip of her chocolate milkshake.

"Don't tell me..."

"I have a Magikarp now."

She sighed. "Oh, Jack, how'd you fall for _that_?"

"He wouldn't leave me alone. He only left after I bought the damn thing." I shrugged. "At least he lowered the price to two fifty."

"How much was it at first?"

"Five hundred."

She suddenly started choking on a fry. I reached over and slapped her back, causing the fry to shook out of her throat and onto the table. We stared at it before Karen brushed it away and looked at me. "_Five_ hundred poké?"

"That's why I didn't want to buy him." I took my newly acquired Magikarp's Pokeball from my belt. "Guess I'm stuck with him now," I said, hoping my irritation didn't show.

Ten minutes later, Karen and I were at the Center's reception counter. Karen had already booked a room, and we were going to arrange it so that we could share the room.

"You two, in the same room?" the Center's Nurse Joy asked.

"Yep!" Karen chirped.

The nurse looked at her, then at me, and said, "I don't think that's very... appropriate."

I clenched my jaw and made a fist.

"Huh? Why?" Karen asked.

"Well, a boy and a girl shouldn't... really share a room," Nurse Joy replied hesitantly.

"But we've always shared a room," Karen said.

"Well, um... how do I put it-"

"Just give us the damn room!" I shouted, slamming my fist on the counter.

Karen and the nurse gaped at me. Finally, the nurse frowned and said, "Do you have a Pokedex?"

We handed her our Pokedexes and after a few moments gave them back. "Alright, you two are in the same room... together."

"Thanks!" Karen chirped as she replaced her Pokedex in her bag.

I slipped mine into my jeans pocket and turned to follow Karen to the room, ignoring the odd look Nurse Joy gave me and the concerned glance from Karen.

As soon as we entered our room and I closed the door, Karen whirled on me. "Jack, what the hell's wrong with you? Why'd you shout at Nurse Joy like that?"

Not answering, I brushed past her and tossed my backpack on one of the beds. I took a step toward the restroom and Karen moved in front of me.

"Jack, answer me."

I moved to step around her and she stopped me by grabbing my shoulders and spinning me to face her. She looked me in the eye, and her eyes shone with a determined intensity. I sighed, knowing she wouldn't just let me off the hook. I glanced sideways at nothing before looking back at her.

"She wouldn't give us the room," I said simply.

"That's a bunch of crap, Jack."

I shrugged her hands off and reached for the bathroom door when Karen said, "It's about Rattata."

I stopped, hand wrapped around the doorknob. "So what if it is?" I said softly.

"Oh, Jack, you, you can't let his death affect you like this. I can understand how you feel-"

My fist collided with the wall, rattling the painting of grassy plains hanging on there. "You don't understand!" I shouted. "None of _your_ Pokemon have died. How could you _possibly_ understand?" I whirled to face her and immediately regretted my outburst.

Karen's eyes were wide, her mouth an O shape. We stared at each other for a few seconds before she closed her mouth and shook her head.

"You're right. I don't know how it feels. But, please Jack, you need to calm down," Karen pleaded.

I turned my gaze out the window, at the setting sun shining a halo on Mt. Moon. I felt rage boiling up in me, rage at Karen. But I knew that I had absolutely no reason to be mad with her. She was just trying to help me. I felt really guilty about shouting at her, but for some reason I couldn't bring myself to apologize, especially not when she was looking at me like that. Looking vulnerable, almost, and hurt. I shook my head before going to the door.

"Jack?"

"I'm going for a walk."

* * *

I shuffled along the narrow path that wound away from the Pokemon Center into the forest. A few minutes of walking led me to a tall tree. I studied it for a moment. It was about forty feet tall, and had a thick trunk. I nodded, finding it suitable, and soon afterward was perched on the highest branch that would support me, some thirty feet above the ground. I planted my feet as firmly as possible and placed a hand on the trunk to steady myself. I gazed up at the half moon and wondered whether the legend of the origins of Clefairy were true.

"Doubtful. But that'd be really awesome," I mused.

Despite myself, my thoughts went to Rattata. My eyes began to prickle as I stared at the moon. I rubbed my arms over them. "Damn it, _why _did he have to die?" I punched the tree and my branch swayed dangerously. But I didn't care. It finally steadied and a tear slid down my cheek as my eyes fell to the ground below. "Why?"

I screwed my eyes shut as a few more tears squeezed through. I wiped them away and sighed. I wanted to get over Rattata's death. I knew that my journey might not be a happy-go-lucky adventure. Even my mom told me that something bad might happen, but _this_? One of my mom's Pokemon died-her Venomoth-but she said it happened in an incredibly fierce battle against some other Trainer, and that it was several years after she first set out. To have a Pokemon die only a _month_ after? What would Mom think? Would she be disappointed? I slapped myself for thinking that. _That's ridiculous, of course she won't be disappointed._

"You're right, Karen, I have to move on," I said. "But how do I do it?"

I took a deep breath and heard voices. I could barely hear them, and whatever I did hear I couldn't make out. I leaned forward slightly and peered around the tree trunk toward Mt. Moon, where the voices seemed to be coming from. I scanned the mountain and was about to lean back when movement caught my eye. I squinted and could just make out figures moving in the dark.

My interest piqued, I made my way back to the ground and approached the towering mountain. I looked around, spotting a narrow ledge wide enough for me to walk up. I followed it as it wound up the mountainside, and soon heard the voices again, clearer this time.

"...this way?"

"So no one else will see us, dumbass."

"Screw you."

I slowed down and crept closer. As I rounded a bend, I came to what could be described as a small plateau. I saw a group of men up ahead, all dressed in black, standing in front of a blocked cave. One of them snapped open a Pokeball, and a Machoke appeared in front of him. The Trainer gave the Pokemon a command, there was a loud crack and something was thrown up. I watched it arc through the air and hit the mountain thirty feet above me. The boulder plummeted toward me, surrounded by debris, and my heart leapt into my throat. Biting my tongue to keep from crying out, I dove away as the boulder slammed down in the spot I had just been. I gaped at it before standing as quietly as possible. Whoever they were, they didn't seem like they would take kindly to strangers, and I didn't want to be found.

Fortunately, the debris created a wall, keeping me from sight even as I peered through a gap between the rocks. My eyes widened when I got a good look at them under the light from the moon. They all had a large, tell-tale red R on their chests.

Team Rocket.

My hand slowly curled into a fist. _What the hell are they doing here?_ My heart damn near stopped when one of them broke off from the rest and came in my direction.

_Oh crap oh crap oh crap oh crap oh crap._

I hurried to wedged myself as far into the rocks as possible, to keep out of sight as the Team Rocket grunt stopped right on the other side of the boulder. Past the sound of my heart hammering in my ears, I hear what sounded like a zipper being undone, a sigh of relief, and the sound of liquid splashing on the ground. I looked down as a dark liquid trickled past the boulder, heading down the slope. _Oh, that is disgusting. Well, when nature calls, I guess you gotta answer._

I moved my foot to keep it away from the liquid and my heart almost stopped when I accidentally kicked a small rock away.

"Hm?"

_Oh crap oh crap oh crap oh crap oh crap. _I pushed myself up against the rock as far as I could. I watched the Team Rocket grunt's shadow appear and edge closer. He came closer, and closer, and closer. _Oh _crap,_ what am I gonna do? _I curled a fist, steeling myself. _Gonna have to take him out._ The grunt's boot appeared, but then he stopped when one of the other grunts called, "Hey, Sloan, what are you doing? Get the hell back here?"

"Leave me alone, I was takin' a piss!" the grunt called back. He turned and went back to them. I noticed I wasn't breathing and felt a little light-headed. I slowly let out a breath, listening to the crunch of the grunt's boots as he walked away. Taking care to stay as far away from the trickle of liquid, I peered between the rocks. They five grunts disappeared into the mouth of the now-open cave and were immediately swallowed up by the darkness inside.

Seeing that the coast was clear, I stepped out from the barrier of rocks. A sudden, white-hot rage flared up, and my fists began trembling. _Don't worry, Karen. I know how to get over it. _

"I will destroy them."

I turned and went back to the Pokemon center

I opened the door to our room and stopped. The TV was on and Karen sat in the lone armchair, watching... what the hell? It looked like she was watching some sort of soap opera, and the character's were... Pokemon. On the screen, a two Pokemon were talking.

"Oh, Jigglypuff, you can do so much better than Raticate," Karen said.

"What the hell are you watching?"

Karen yelped and jumped, her hand tightening around the remote she held. The channel suddenly changed to the news from Pewter City. Karen looked from the TV to me.

"The news."

"That's a bunch of crap, Karen."

She frowned at the use of her words before pouting. "It was..." She trailed off into incoherent mumbling.

I stared at her until she cried, "Days of our Poké-Lives!"

"Uh-huh."

I moved over to my bed and lay down.

"You okay, Jack?"

I thought about the group of Team Rocket grunts and I clenched a fist. "I will be soon."

Karen frowned but said nothing else.

* * *

"So you wanna head out now?"

"Might as well," I replied.

After a quick breakfast, Karen and I left the Pokemon Center the next morning and made for Mt. Moon.

I had stayed up late last night, formulating a plan. I was going to casually take note of the narrow path that sloped up the mountain and suggest we go there. We would inspect the cave and, if the Team Rocket grunts were still there, I would destroy them all and find out what the hell they wanted. It seemed like a fool-proof plan, and I was about to put it into action when Karen stopped.

"You hear that?"

I furrowed my eyebrows and listened. "Nope, nothing," I said, shaking my head.

Karen walked to side, approaching the path I had walked the night before. Soon, we came to that narrow ledge that went up, and then I heard it.

Someone crying.

"C'mon, Jack!"

"Karen, wait!"

But she was already sprinting up the path. I took off after her and soon afterward came to the wall of rocks. I moved around them and stopped. Kneeling in the center of the small plateau, was Olivia. Her face was in her hands, she was sobbing, and... a mutilated Butterfree lay before her.

"Olivia, what happened?" Karen asked, already kneeling next to her.

Olivia looked up at the sound of Karen's voice, then at me as I came closer.

"What happened?" I echoed vehemently, even though I already had an idea.

Olivia's face contorted as another sob wracked her body, and she threw herself at me, wrapping me up in her arms. She cried, her tears soaking into my shirt, as I tentatively patted her back.

"Oh, Jack... Mitchell... They got him!"

Ice went through my veins. "What?"

"Who's they?" Karen asked.

"Were they wearing black?"

Olivia pulled away to look at me. "Yeah, how'd you know?"

"And they had red Rs on their chests."

She nodded, tears streaking her face.

"Team Rocket," I said to Karen. She nodded, biting her lip. My gaze went to the dead Bug on the ground. "This was your Butterfree?"

Olivia sobbed out a, "Yes," as fresh tears sprang from her eyes and she hugged me again.

"What happened here?" I repeated.

Olivia sniffed a few times and wiped away her tears. "M-mitchell... I finally caught up to him, here. But then these guys came out of that cave"-she pointed at the one I had seen the grunts enter last night-"and attacked him. We tried fighting them off, but they beat us, took Mitchell, and... and... killed Butterfree." She began sobbing again.

White-hot rage flared up in me as Olivia cried on my shoulder and Karen stood nearby, hand over her mouth. Making a decision, I gently pried Olivia from me.

"Stay here," I said.

I walked to the entrance to the cave as Olivia said, "No, Jack, don't go in there!"

"Jack, wait!" Karen grabbed my wrist. "You can't go in by yourself!"

"I'm going in, alone or not. I have to do something about Team Rocket."

"Then I'm coming, too."

I looked back at her and could see her decision was final. I nodded. "We'll be back," I reassured Olivia, who had now stood up.

"No, Jack, please don't," she pleaded, placing her hands on my arm. "They're too strong."

"Stay here," I repeated, removing her hands from my arms. They fell down to her side and I went into the cave, Karen close behind.

"Be careful," Olivia called.

* * *

"Why's it so damn dark!"

"It's a cave. What'd you expect?"

"But it's _too_ dark!"

I sighed and brought out Charmeleon. The fire on his tail provided enough light to see by.

"That works," Karen chirped.

"Can you keep it down now? We don't want Team Rocket hearing us before we can get to them.

She nodded and pantomimed zipping her mouth closed.

We had only walked in about fifty feet before it got pitch black. At least now with Charmeleon leading the way, we wouldn't be stumbling around in the dark. Another fifty feet and we began to hear voices. I held up a hand, signaling for Karen to stop, and crept further ahead. I soon came to be standing on a ledge, overlooking a fairly large cavern. There were some stalactites hanging from the ceiling, as well as a number of stalagmites poking up from the ground, and form somewhere there came the sound of dripping. Dotting the floor were workbenches, some with large drills resting on them and other withs sledgehammers and pickaxes. But that wasn't interested me.

On the cavern floor below stood the group of Team Rocket grunts, and in the middle of them, was Mitchell. I had expected him to be afraid, cowering on the floor, but I was completely wrong. What he was actually doing was hopping between the grunts, saying something, and prancing away whenever they swatted at him.

"You know, it probably wasn't such a good idea to take him along," one grunt said to another.

"Yeah, he's so fucking annoying."

"Ah ah ah, no swearing young man!" Mitchell said, tutting. "Now you're gonna have to put money in the swear jar!"

"Shut up, you annoying shit."

The second grunt swung, his fist connecting with the side of Mitchell's head. He fell to the ground, eyes wide and unfocused. My fists clench and the knuckles turned white as intense hatred flared up. Mitchell blinked a few times and sat up.

"You struck me!" he cried theatrically, placing a hand on his head. "Oh, woe, woe is me, for I have been struck down!" He placed the back of his hand on his forehead, sighing dramatically. "Stella, Stella, wait for me..."

"I said shut up!" The grunt kicked him in the head and Mitchell fell over, unmoving.

I snapped. The wide ledge was only about ten feet high, but hidden well enough in the shadows thrown by the lights they had installed. Which was why I was able to jump down, move up behind a grunt that had his back to me, and yanked his shirt back. He cried out in surprise as my elbow came around and smashed into his nose. I felt something give way as he screamed, clutching at his face as he fell.

As was expected the grunt's cry drew the attention of the other grunts.

"Holy crap, he broke Ken's nose!"

"Leave him alone," I said to them as Mitchell groaned.

"Ugh, Jack, issat you?"

"Do you have any idea who we are, kid? We're Team Rocket, and we don't take orders from brats," one grunt said.

"Yeah!" another agreed.

"Sloan, you're the rookie. Take care of 'im."

"Sweet." The same grunt from last night stepped forward, rolling a Pokeball in his hand. "This is gonna be fun. Rhyhorn!"

He tossed the Pokeball, the Pokemon inside coming out. It was about as tall as me and stood on all fours. It was covered in a rocky hide, had small horn on its head, and watched me with beady eyes. "Kill him. Horn Attack!"

With a bellow the Rhyhorn charged forward. But I knew enough about the species to realize that while it was very strong, it was also _very_ slow. "Charmeleon, Iron Tail!"

My starter leaped from the ledge above me, tail glowing dully, and slammed it across the charging Pokemon's face. It hadn't built up much speed yet, which was why the attack managed to stop it in its tracks. It wavered on its feet, looking disoriented from the blow, and I took that chance to strike again.

"Metal Claw!"

Charmeleon's claws slashed the Rhyhorn's face, searing off a rocky chunk off its cheek and some blood spurted onto the dirt. The Rhyhorn bellowed and careened away. I pressed my advantage, calling for Iron Tail again. The attack hit the Rock-type on the head, sending it crashing to the ground, eyes glazed over.

The Team Rocket grunts gaped.

"Holy crap, that was the strongest Pokemon between us."

"And he took it out like nothing!"

"Well, we've been found out, so there's really only one thing left to do." This grunt lifted a small device, elongated and with a red button on top.

"But we're still in here!" Sloan cried.

"We were sent to get Moon Stones. We didn't find Moon Stones. Now we've been discovered. It's time to cut our losses and get the hell out of here."

"I agree," one said as Karen joined me. She had come down a slope that went down from the ledge, some seventy feet away.

She saw the defeated Rhyhorn and turned to me, eyes wide. "You beat it?"

I nodded, watching the grunts arguing over the device.

"Do it!"

"No, dammit, we're still in here!"

"Shut up, I'm doin' it."

"No!"

The grunt pressed the button and explosions rocked the cavern. The Rhyhorn was recalled to its Pokeball as the grunts turned to run.

"See ya later, kids!" One taunted as they ran off into a tunnel.

The cave shook under our feet and Karen yelped. "Jack what's going on?"

"They set up some bombs. They're gonna blow the place up!"

"We gotta get out of here!"

I recalled Charmeleon and called for Mitchell, but he was already up and running toward the same tunnel.

"Mitchell, you idiot, get back here!"

He either ignored me or didn't hear me, because he ran into the tunnel. Seeing it was pointless to go after him while the cave was falling apart, I followed Karen to the slope. We scrambled up it as the Team Rocket grunt I had attacked hurried to his feet. He took a few stumbling steps before a stalactite snapped and fell.

Right for him.

I turned away at the last second, hearing only a choked cry and a sickening crunch.

Karen and I sprinted alone the ledge, heading for the pitch black tunnel we had come in from. We almost reached it when, with a thundering boom, the entire tunnel collapsed.

"No!" Karen wailed.

"Damn it!" I shouted, kicking at one of the rocks. I frantically set to trying to dig my way through, but quickly saw it was no use and turned to Karen. "We have to find another way!" I remembered the tunnel the grunts had fled into. I reached for Karen's hand when a large chunk of rock broke off from the ceiling and fell for us. I quickly pushed Karen away, she yelped, the rock hit the ledge, and the floor gave way beneath us.

Karen and I fell, screaming, and the darkness quickly enveloped us.

* * *

**Author's Note:** So how was it? Come on, guys, reviews are always appreciated. By the way, a few chapters ago, I mentioned that the Pokemon section of TVTrope's Fanfiction Recommendation category was nonexistent. I was wrong. WAY wrong. But it'd still be nice having mine there, right? *wink, wink, nudge, nudge*


	13. Inside Mt Moon

Chapter 13-Inside Mt. Moon

Olivia kneeled at the mouth of the cave. She stared into the dark, hoping to catch a glimpse of Jack. No such luck. She glanced back at her Butterfree and a sob escaped her. She hung her head and screwed her eyes shut as more tears came. _I wasn't strong enough. And because of my weakness, Butterfree is dead, Mitchell's been taken, and now Jack is probably gonna die, too._ She fell forward onto her hands and bashed a fist onto the rocky ground. She ignored the pain that flared up in her hand, knowing that she deserved it, for being so weak, for not being able to do anything but watch as her Pokemon was slaughtered by a Parasect and Mitchell was beaten into submission and taken into he cave.

"What am I good for?" she shouted. "If I can't even protect my friends, _what am I good for_?"

Her tears began dripping to the ground, darkening the dirt where they fell. "Why did I let Jack go in? He's gonna get killed, too!" It was here that she realized something-she shouldn't just stay here, crying. She should be helping Jack, avenging Butterfree. She looked back at her dead Pokemon and shakily stood. Olivia went over to her and dropped to her knees.

"I'm so sorry, Butterfree. I'm... so sorry..." She clutched her Pokemon's body to her chest as more sobs left her. "I hoped you're happy, wherever you are now." With a final squeeze, she gently let her Pokemon back down and stood. She set to jaw to keep it from trembling and took purposeful strides toward the cave, reaching for a Pokeball. "Just wait, Jack. I'm coming to help."

She stopped just outside the entrance, rolling the Pokeball in her hand nervously, peering into the darkness. "Come on, you can do it. Jack's in trouble, you gotta help him." Olivia took a breath to steel herself and took a step forward. As soon as she did, though, she heard what sounded like... beeping? She glance around, looking for the source of the sound, and her heart almost stopped when she spotted some objects stuck to the inside of the cave.

The beeping suddenly sped up.

_A bomb? _She barely had time to think about turning and running before there was a deafening explosion, the air around her clapped in her ears, and she was sent hurtling off her feet. She fell on the rocky ground, the air knocked out of her lungs. A sharp pain in her lower back told her that she had landed on a rock. A cloud of dust had been thrown into the air, and when she took a shaky breath she immediately started coughing. She slowly sat up, waving her hand to get rid of the dust so she could breath. Another coughing fit took her as she rolled onto her knees. Her ears were ringing. Dirt had fallen into her eyes. She wiped at them as she shakily got to her feet. The cloud cleared enough so she could see past it.

Her heart sank.

The mouth of the cave had collapsed. A pile of debris now blocked it.

"Oh _no._" Olivia moved forward and inspected it for a way through. There was none that she could see. She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted, "Jack! Mitchell! Karen! Can you hear me?" She stood still, waiting for an answer. None came. "I have to help them." She set about trying to dig her way through, tossing away as many rocks at a time as she could.

After a minute, she felt a pain on her palm as she threw a particularly large rock. She glanced down and saw she had cut herself. It wasn't too deep or big, thankfully, but it did serve to help her realize something: at this rate, Jack and Mitchell could probably be...

"No! I won't let that happen. Hang in there, guys." Olivia reached for her Pokeballs and stopped. She quickly went over her remaining Pokemon-Staryu wouldn't be much good at digging, and Eevee and Vulpix weren't physically strong enough. That left...

The Pokeball snapped open and Nidorina stood in front of her, ready for action. "Nidorina, think you could dig through that?" She gestured toward the cave-in and her Pokemon eyed it. After a moment she nodded. Nidorina went forward and started to claw at the rocks.

But it only took a couple of minutes for Olivia to notice that they weren't making any progress. Whenever Nidorina would clear out rocks, more would fall and take their place. And Nidorina was getting tired.

Olivia's heart sank even further. She fell to her knees and slammed a palm on the ground. "Why am I so useless?" she screamed. Hot tears began to slide from her eyes, but she blinked them away. "I can't even help my friends. I'm sorry, Jack, Mitchell..."

Nidorina came over and touched her nose to Olivia's cheeks. She whimpered, and it almost seemed like an apology.

"It's okay, Nidorina, it's not your fault."

Olivia placed a hand on Nidorina's head, who nuzzled into it. She was the first Pokemon Olivia had captured, back when she was a Nidoran, on Route 8, just west of Saffron. Olivia liked to think that they were close-at least, as close as they could be after a little more than a month-and she knew that Nidorina was loyal to her. Which was why she figured that what had suddenly popped into her head might work.

She went over to her pack, which had been been set down and forgotten when those guys attacked Mitchell. She rummaged through it, finding what she was looking for. She took it out. It was about as big as her fist and oval-shaped. The edges were a little rough, like had been broken off, and it was midnight black. Olivia nodded and went back to Nidorina, crouching to meet her at eye level.

"Nidorina, we need to get past that"-she nodded at the pile of fallen rocks- "but Staryu, Eevee, and Vulpix can't do it. You're the best choice for it, and you still can't do it." Olivia lifted the stone she held in front of her Pokemon. Her eyes widened a bit and she sniffed at it. "But maybe with this, you might be able to. If we don't clear that away, then Mitchell and Jack might... might die, in there. What do want to do?"

Nidorina had known Mitchell for as long as she had been a part of Olivia's team. She knew how much Olivia cared for him, and Olivia knew that Nidorina would do what she could to protect Mitchell. The Poison-type pawed at the dirt and glanced at the cave-in. For a few tense minutes, Nidorina did nothing. Olivia was about to give up when her Pokemon turned back to her. She nodded.

Olivia bit her lip. "Are you sure about this? We can't go back if we go through with this."

Nidorina nodded again, her jaw set.

"Alright."

Olivia touched the Moon Stone to Nidorina's head.

* * *

_Plip. Plip. Plip_

The noise barely registered.

_Plip. Plip. Plip._

It seemed nearby, but sounded far away.

_Plip. Plip. Plip._

I stirred, groaning.

_Plip. Plip. Plip._

My eyes fluttered open, just in time to see an arm smack into my face.

"Ow!"

I snapped a hand over my nose and shoved the arm away with the other. I sat up, rubbing at my nose, and glanced at the one laying next to me.

"Mitchell?"

"No, Mr. Whiskers, that's not friendly at all..."

I glanced around. We were in a dark cavern, the sound of dripping echoing from... somewhere. Off to the side was a cluster of rocks shaped vaguely like a fist. Thank God we didn't fall on those. Fall...? The events from earlier came to me. Finding Olivia, going after Team Rocket, the explosion, falling... Karen.

"Mitchell." I shook the boy as he pawed at the air. "Mitchell, wake up."

"Mr. Whiskers, that tickles..."

"Wake up, dammit!"

Mitchell's eyes shot open and shifted toward me. "Oh, hello, Jack."

"Get up," I said, getting to my feet.

He hopped up, giving a big yawn. "That sure was a good nap. I feel oddly refreshed!"

I glanced around again. It was dark, but there was just enough light to see by, somehow. Several tunnels branched off from where we stood, the insides consumed by darkness. "Come on, we have to find Karen."

"How are we gonna do that?" Mitchell asked. I raised an eyebrow. The dopey look on his face was gone, replaced by one of seriousness.

I thought over his question. "I don't know," I admitted. "But we have to find her."

"Hang on."

Mitchell stuck a finger in his mouth and popped it back out, lifting it into the air. He stood still for a few moments, eyes narrowed in concentration. "That way," he finally said, pointing to a tunnel that went to the left. "There's a slight breeze coming from that direction. Karen's a smart girl, I'm willing to bet that she'll go that way. We just have to meet up with her."

I stared at Mitchell. He was perfectly calm and rational now, when before he had been crazy and hyper. He noticed me staring.

"What?"

I shook my head. "It, it's nothing. That's a good idea."

"Well, then let's go."

Surprisingly, Mitchell took the lead. I followed, glancing around. It was suddenly a whole lot darker in this tunnel than where we were. It was only some thirty seconds before Mitchell let out a noise and there was the sound of something hitting the ground.

"Hey, Mitchell, what happened?"

"I fell," he groaned. "It's so dark in here."

There were the sounds of him getting to his feet.

"I'll take care of that," I said. I brought out Charmeleon, the fire on his tail sending a circle of light around us.

"Ah, much-" He stopped short.

I tilted my head at the fearful expression on his face. "What is it?"

"Y-you hear that?"

I did, actually. What sounded like squeaking, coming from above us. I craned my neck to look up and froze.

The ceiling was completely covered in a shifting, writhing mass of dark blue and purple.

"Oh, crap," we said.

The little creatures began twisting their head around to look at us. Well, look wasn't really the right word, since they didn't have any eyes I could see. They began stirring more than before, letting out more squeaks that blended together.

"Oh no, oh crap oh crap, Z-zubat..." Mitchell was breathing fast and hard, his eyes wide, forehead dotted with sweat that glistened in the light from Charmeleon's tail.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

He shook his head quickly, taking a few steps back from the colony of Zubat. They noticed his movement and some screeched. Soon, they were joined by the rest of the Pokemon, their screeches melding together, creating an ear-splitting noise that hurt my ears. I clapped my hands over them, seeing Charmeleon and Mitchell doing the same. Mitchell began screaming, crouching, his head falling between his knees.

"No, no, no! Shut up shut up shut up _shut up!_"

"Mitchell, calm down!" I had to shout to be heard over the racket the Zubat were making. But he didn't seem to hear me.

The Pokemon were beginning to take flight, some already swooping down at us. One smacked me in the head, another slammed into Charmeleon, who swatted it away. A Zubat crashed into Mitchell, knocking him to the ground. Almost instantly, more Zubat descended on him, screeching as they bit at him.

Mitchell screamed even harder as another Zubat collided with my head. This time, though, the bat got held on. I could feel its legs tangling up in my ear. I reached up to pull it off when I felt tiny pinpricks on my neck. The strength left my legs and I fell to my knees. I feebly reached up again, but then felt the strength sucked out of me and I collapsed on the ground. The edges of my vision began to darken and I could _feel_ the Zubat sucking me dry.

Suddenly, the Pokemon was knocked away, flopping on the ground before rejoining the others as they flew around. Almost immediately, I felt my strength return. I shakily pushed myself up, helped along by Charmeleon.

"Get them away from him," I said to my starter, pointing at the Zubat screeching over Mitchell.

Charmeleon fired Flamethrower, scorching the group of Zubat. They shrieked and dispersed, joining the colony fluttering around above, as I ran over to Mitchell. I helped him up, and couldn't help but notice how much he was trembling. I was about to ask if he was okay when a figure dove and slammed into my back. This one was much stronger than the other Zubat, actually causing me to fall forward onto the ground as Mitchell backed up against the wall.

From my prone position, I looked up at the figure that had crashed into me. My heart skipped a beat. This Pokemon was almost three times bigger than any of the Zubat. It had small, beady eyes, stubby legs with feet, and a large wingspan of about three feet. But by far its most intimidating feature was the huge, gaping mouth that took up most of its head, with two sets of fangs, two on top and two on the bottom.

The Golbat dove once more and I ducked my head. The Pokemon narrowly missed me, just brushing past my head, and banked to avoid Charmeleon's Flamethrower. I jumped to my feet and went over to Mitchell, who was sitting on the ground, holding his head and rocking back and forth. He cried out in fear when I took a hold of his arm and hauled him to his feet.

"Come on, Mitchell, snap out of it! We gotta get out of here!"

"I-I can't!"

A Golbat-I wasn't sure if it was the same one or not-swooped and I lashed out with my arm. I manged to connect with my blow, knocking it into the wall opposite us. It sank to the ground but didn't stay, jumping right back into the air. I looked up into the colony and froze. Among the countless Zubat, I saw several Golbat flitting around. I counted at _least_ two dozen. From what I knew about Golbat, they sucked blood as food, but sometimes, when they felt threatened, they attacked and wouldn't stop sucking until their victim...

"Mitchell, come _on_!" I roared, yanking him along.

He only screamed in response.

"Damn it! Charmeleon, Flamethrower!"

My starter set about firing jets of flame at the bats, knocking some of them out of the air. But no matter how many fell, their numbers didn't seem to dwindle at all. And Charmeleon was tired, having to ward off blows from the Pokemon and attack when he got the chance. Then a Golbat collided with him, sinking its teeth into his flank. Charmeleon hissed and tried to shake it off, but his struggles were quickly becoming weaker.

I snatched up another Pokeball, sending out Pikachu. "Thundershock!

Pikachu's cheeks sparked as he charged up the attack, and soon let loose a bolt of lightning that hit the Golbat, dislodging , as it went back to, Pikachu let loose on the colony. It arced among all of the bats, causing them to shriek even more than before. Pikachu cut off the attack and I watched the colony.

To my relief, they all gathered together in one writhing mass of blue and purple and, with screeches that echoed endlessly of the rock walls, took off down the tunnel. The sounds of flapping gradually faded until I couldn't hear them anymore.

"Good job, Pikachu," I said to him as he hopped onto my shoulder. He nuzzled me before I recalled him. "You, too, Charmeleon. Thanks."

He huffed some smoke out from his nose. I turned to Mitchell. He had wrapped his arms around himself, shivering almost uncontrollably, his face contorted into a mask of terror.

"You okay?"

No response.

"Mitchell?"

Nothing.

I placed a hand on his shoulder and he jumped, giving a yelp.

"What's wrong?"

He only shook his head.

I glanced down the direction the colony had gone and thought I could faintly hear screeching and... something else. Whatever it was, it couldn't be any good. We had to leave that area before the colony decided to come back.

"Come on, Mitchell," I said, leading him away down the tunnel, Charmeleon at my side.

* * *

Karen groaned and opened her eyes. At least, she was sure she opened them. Yeah, they were open. So why was it so dark? She slowly sat up and grimaced at the sharp pain in her back. She reached back and gently prodded her lower back, and winced at what was probably a nasty bruise. She looked around. It wasn't pitch black, in fact. She could see, at least. Apparently, she was in a tunnel that stretched left and right until disappearing into blackness. She remembered confronting the Team Rocket, Jack defeating their Rhyhorn, then what could only have been bombs going off, causing the cavern to collapse and her and Jack to fall.

"I'm alive..."

She got to her feet and wondered just how it was that she was still breathing, and not buried under tons of rock. Then she realized she was alone.

"Where'd Jack go?"

Karen reached up to scratch her head then stopped. She patted her head, feeling only her hair.

"Huh? Where's my hat?"

She turned and searched in the dark for it, figuring it had fallen nearby. She saw a white object jutting out from behind a rock. She went over to and pulled it out, relieved to find that it was her hat.

"I'm so glad, this hat is awesome."

Karen replaced the hat on her head and paused. She turned to face down the tunnel, where faint sounds came from. She frowned. What could it be? The noises showed no signs of stopping any time soon, and they were beginning to make her nervous. Then the noises began to get louder and louder. Karen took a nervous step back when, in the dim distance, she saw a mass of... of something, flying in her direction. The noises soon turned into high-pitched screeches, and the cloud of Zubat and Golbat were on her.

Their wings beat around her face, and their screeches were almost deafening. Karen shrieked and threw herself against a wall, covering herself as best she could to protect herself. Every few seconds she would have to smack away a Zubat that latched onto her head. At one point, a Zubat crashed into her head, knocking her hat off and disorienting her. Karen stumbled to the left, shaking her head to clear her vision. When she could finally see clearly, it was just in time to see a Golbat dove straight for her. She threw her arms up to protect herself and the Golbat sank its fangs into her flesh. She wrenched her arms from its grasp, leaving a thin trickle of blood leaking down her forearm. Karen then began to struggle with the bat, trying her best to push it away from her. It kept lunging forward, aiming to sink its teeth in again, and Karen just barely managed to keep it at bay.

Fortunately, a Zubat that was zipping around collided with the Golbat, knocking it away, screeching. It flapped up and was lost among the colony. Karen snatched up a Pokeball from her belt and sent out Bulbasaur, who she commanded use Vine Whip to slap away any of the panicking Pokemon that came too close. Then something slammed into the back of her head, knocking her off balance and she fell to the dirt. She curled up into a ball when a Zubat swooped toward her, but fortunately Bulbasaur slapped it away, giving Karen a chance to back up against the wall, Bulbasaur coming closer to better defend her.

Some time later, Karen wasn't sure how long, she was too disoriented, the colony began to disperse and fly away, leaving a few stragglers that Bulbasaur whipped to get them going. When they were finally gone, Karen let out a breath.

"Th-thanks, Bulbasaur," she said shakily, patting her starter's head. Bulbasaur sidled up next to her, glancing around warily, as Karen pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs. "Where are you, Jack?"

* * *

Mitchell shuffled along the tunnel as I helped him along. Up ahead I saw a large rock.

"Come on, Mitchell. Sit down."

I gently pushed him down to sit and he immediately clamped onto his knees, squeezing.

"Mitchell?"

He said nothing, beginning to rock slightly.

"You okay?"

He took a shaky breath. "Not really."

"What happened? The Zubat and Golbat attacked, and you freaked out."

He whimpered. Then it dawned on me, and I kicked myself mentally for not having realized it sooner.

"Are you afraid of Zubat?"

He whimpered again, louder this time, squeezing his knees harder. That had to be it. Afraid of Zubat. Never thought he would actually be afraid of them. Maybe something happened to him when he was younger.

I waited for him to stop shaking and regain his composure. Ten minutes later, he took a deep breath, seemingly calm.

"I'm okay," he reported, then gave a curt laugh. "Guess you wanna know what happened back there."

I waited as he took another breath.

"Yeah, truth is, I am afraid of Zubat. Have been since I was five, when a flock of 'em attacked me outside of my aunt's house. I was playing with Olivia inside a cave we found when they came out of nowhere." His eyes suddenly widened and became unfocused, as if he was looking at something that wasn't there. "Laughter, playing in the dark, screeching, dark forms falling from the ceiling, can only see dark forms flying around, flapping of wings, screaming, more screeching, bite on the arm, another on the hand, another on the head, another on the neck, more screaming, beating of wings, bright flashes, electricity, dark forms flying away, whimpering and crying, someone calling my name." His sudden flow of words stopped and he blinked, eyes refocusing. "Did I just say a bunch of words?"

I nodded.

Mitchell frowned. "According to Oliva, I do that sometimes."

I furrowed my eyebrows. That must have been incredibly traumatic, for Mitchell to do that so often that he just shrugged it off like he had only sneezed.

"Hey, I'm okay," he said, noticing my expression. "Really, don't worry."

"Alright," I said reluctantly. I put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "But if that happens again, I'll be here."

He grinned. "Thanks, Jackie."

"Don't call me that."

He grinned wider. "Then how about Jackson?"

I rolled my eyes. "Come on, let's find a way out of here."

"Jacques?"

"No."

"Jack?"

"Yes."

"Hm, not quite exciting enough. How 'bout Jake?"

"No."

"Jacqueline!"

"No!"

* * *

I stopped when we reached yet another four way intersection.

"Which way, Mitchell?"

He put his finger in his mouth again and stuck it in the air, tongue sticking out. Finally, he pointed to the left. "Thataway."

I set off down the new tunnel, Mitchell and Charmeleon close behind. A couple of minutes passed with the only sounds being our footsteps, the dripping of water from somewhere far off, and the occasional cry from a Pokemon. It was dark, and I could only see in the circle of light provided by Charmeleon's tail.

I started to wonder just how long we'd been in there. It had been a least two hours, maybe more, since I first regained consciousness, but being inside Mt. Moon, there was no way to tell whether it was still morning or not.

Then, up ahead, I saw what looked like some sort of opening

"What's that?"

"Must be the exit!" Mitchell said enthusiastically, trotting toward it.

"I don't think so," I said, following him.

Mitchell reached the opening and stopped, standing stock-still. Worried that there might be more Zubat, I jogged up to him and stopped, too, when I saw what he was looking at.

We were on a ledge, overlooking a cavern. But this one had a very familiar set of rocks, rocks that were clumped together to vaguely resembled a fist.

"Oh, damn."

"We're right back where we started!" Mitchell wailed.

_Damn, we went in a huge circle. _I held up a placating hand, saying, "Calm down, calm down, we can still find a way out." I nodded at the passage that went off the right. "Maybe this'll lead to the exit."

Mitchell did the trick with his finger again and nodded. "I do feel a breeze coming from there."

I looked around, noting that it was easier to see now. Must be some light seeping in from somewhere. Maybe we were close to an exit. I recalled Charmeleon, thanking him for lighting the way until now, and turned to Mitchell. "Well then, let's go."

* * *

Karen sat up against the wall, in the same position she had been in for the last half hour. She closed her eyes, beginning to feel feverish. She touched her forehead with the back of her hand, feeling at thin sheet of sweat. She did feel a little warm. She glanced down at the two small punctures on her forearm, wondering if they had something to do with it. There was a slight noise down the tunnel and she jumped, Bulbasaur at attention. She calmed her racing heart with a breath and leaned against the rock.

"Help me, Jack..." she whispered.

As time wore on and she remained there, she could see no way out. Despite her prayers, Jack was probably, buried under rubble, and maybe Mitchell, too. Which left her all alone, with only her Pokemon with her. Being so alone, it struck fear into her heart. She clenched her fists, nails pressing into her palms. What if no one found her? What if she was stranded here? What if she _died_ here?

A tremor went through her. She didn't want to die, she wanted to pull through this. But she saw no way to do it.

"Oh, you are so useless, Karen," she whispered.

Despite her best attempts, Karens thoughts still went to the possibility of her dying. How long until then? She didn't have any food, or water. She had eaten breakfast at the Pokemon Center, but how long would that last her? A few hours?

And what of her parents? She wouldn't even be able to say goodbye to them. They would spend the rest of their lives wondering what happened to their daughter, why she disappeared, probably not know that she had died inside Mt. Moon. She thought of how distant they were in the weeks before she set off on her journey, but she was still convinced that they loved her as much as she did them.

But then she thought about Jack. If he was... her throat seized up at the image of her best friend crushed by tons of rock. _Best friend...? Yeah, best friend. Definitely. But what if he's dead? _Would his mom ever find out? What about Professor Oak, who had been like a father to him when his real dad had divorced his mom and left? How would they feel about his death?

Karen felt the biting sting of tears in her eyes and blinked. A single tear slid down her cheek. "I don't want to-" She froze. Above her were... voices?

She looked up and saw nothing but more rock. Deciding that her ears were playing tricks on her, she rested her chin back on her knees. But the she heard it again. Voices. She blinked, rubbing away the moisture from her eyes. She looked up again, certain now that those were voices. But whose? And why were they coming from above.

A possible reason came to her and her heart skipped several beats. _What if they're ghosts?_ Fear seized her, refusing to let her move, as her throat dried up and a chill shot up her spine. The voices came closer, and then she could hear what they were saying.

"...no, you can not call me Jackie."

"Oh, c'mon, Jack is so boring! You need a cooler name. I know! How 'bout Super Jack!"

"Shut up, Mitchell."

"Hey, look, another opening."

"But this one leads to another tunnel. Let's just keep going."

"Okey-dokey!"

Karen heard their footsteps begin to move away and she was able to find her voice. "Jack?"

They stopped, she heard some shuffling and Jack's head suddenly appeared above her, kicking a pebble off the ledge above. He jerked in surprise.

"Karen? You're okay!"

She nodded, wanting to say, "You're alive!", but her throat had seized up at the sight of her friend. She looked at him blearily through tears as he lowered himself to sit on the edge and slid off. He landed next to her, Mitchell mimicking him, and he kneeled next to her.

"Karen, I thought you were..."

"Me, too," she whispered.

Jack helped her to her feet as Mitchell hit the ground and slipped, falling to the dirt.

"Ow, dammit!"

Karen suddenly felt light-headed, but still managed to hug Jack, letting her tears flow freely, staining the front of his shirt. "I thought you were dead," she said through the lump in her throat.

Jack wrapped his arms around her shoulders, gently rubbing her back. "It's okay, Karen," he said reassuringly. "We're okay."

"D'aww, you guys look so adorable."

"Shut up," Jack snapped.

Karen pulled away from Jack, wiping her eyes as she laughed. "Good to see you, too, Mitchell."

Mitchell saluted and Jack squeezed her shoulder. "Let's find a way out of-"

He stopped, studying her face.

"Are you okay?" he asked. "You look pale."

"Well, I do feel kinda light-headed..."

He glanced down and raised his eyebrows. "You arm!" He grabbed a hold of it, studying the puncture marks left by the Golbat when it had bit her. "Were you bitten?"

"Yeah, a while ago. A whole flock of Zubat and Golbat came from that way"-she pointed down the tunnel -"and were all over me. A Golbat bit me before they left."

Mitchell leaned forward. "Hm, got something that might help." He reached into his bag, a messenger the bag, kinda like Karen's, except it was dark gray, and pulled out a small bottle filled with a purple liquid. "Alrighty, hold still now." He sprayed the stuff on her arm and it instantly began to burn. Karen hissed and yanked her arm back, cradling it against her stomach.

"What the hell was that?"

"Antidote," Mitchell said with a grin, swishing around the stuff in the bottle. "Figured you were poisoned. Thought this would help."

Now that he mentioned it, Karen did feel a lot better. Her head was much clearer, no longer feeling like it was in a vice. "Wow. Thanks, Mitchell."

"Aye aye, milady," Mitchell said with a salute.

"Come on," Jack said, squeezing her shoulder again. "Let's go."

* * *

"We're lost."

"Sure seems like it."

"But there's a breeze coming from that way, so there must be a way out."

"So I guess we just keep walking then," I said.

Karen groaned, "My feet are killing me."

"Let's sing a song to keep up our spirits! Alright, with me! From shining sea to the tallest mountains, I will travel far and wide-"

"Shut up, Mitchell," Karen and I said at the same time.

"Another song then," Mitchell said. "Left foot, right foot, left foot, right foot-"

"Mitchell!"

"Alright, alright, just tryin' to lighten the mood, don't need to bite my head off."

Despite his cheery mood, every time we heard a noise from deep into the caves, Mitchell would jump, stiffen, or otherwise tense. I noticed that all over the placed were tunnels that branched to all places, even up on the walls and the ceiling. I thought it was weird, but thought nothing of it. Some thirty minutes later, Mitchell pointed ahead and said, "What's that?"

In the center of the tunnel, on the floor, was a thin, tall stalagmite, that reached almost to the ceiling. This one was a light-grey, though, unlike the dark brown rock all over the place.

"It's a sta... stala... stalactite."

"Stalagmite," I corrected. Karen looked at me. "Stalactites are on the ceiling, stalagmites on the ground."

"How do you know which word to say?" she asked.

"Well, look at it this way. Stalactite has a c in it, like in ceiling"-I gestured to the rock above us-"stalagmite has a g, as in ground."

"Wow, I never knew that. You really are smart, Jack. Got something in that noggin of yours, you do," she said, tapping my head with a knuckle.

"This one's really tall," Mitchell commented, placing a hand on it. He started. "Huh?"

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"It's warm."

I frowned. "It is?" I placed my hand on it, too, and saw that he was right.

"Why's it warm?" Karen asked. She took a step forward and stumbled when the floor vibrated.

"What the hell was that?" Mitchell whispered after several tense seconds of silence.

Nothing happened, and I figured that it was probably just a Pokemon, somewhere in the mountain. I said so, and turned to head back down the tunnel. Then I stepped on something soft and the ground shook even more. I looked down, lifting up my foot, and stumbled back when an eye opened on the ground.

"Holy crap!"

The ground trembled a whole lot harder than before, and we started to rise. No, wait, _we_ weren't rising, the rock below us was going up into the air. Unable to keep our balance, the three of us slipped, falling off the rock and hitting the ground. The breath was knocked out of my lungs and I frantically pulled in several breaths as Karen and Mitchell fell alongside me. I turned to the rising rock and froze, seeing that it _wasn't_ rock.

It was a Pokemon, one that I was familiar with from my many battles with Brock.

The Onix glowered at us, and roared.

"Oh, hell, it's an Onix!"

We scurried to our feet as the Onix watched us.

"Jack, what should we do?" Karen asked, gaping at the Onix.

In response, the rock snake roared, the sound bouncing off the walls and echoing away until disappearing into the mountain. It seemed that the Onix had been sleeping, and we unknowingly walked right over it. I must have stepped on its eye, which woke it up. And now it was pissed off. The tunnel was far too narrow to send out our Pokemon to battle. There was only one thing we could do now, really.

"Run."

Karen and Mitchell looked at me, then at each other, and I turned and sprinted down the tunnel, Karen and Mitchell close behind. The Onix bellowed again and began to give chase, shearing off chunks off the wall as it came after us.

"Jack, what do we do?" Karen shouted to be heard over the rock snake's sounds of chase.

"Keep running!"

"I coulda thought of that!"

"Then why'd you ask?"

At one point, I swear, the Onix came so close that I thought I could feel it's breath on my back. I didn't dare look behind me, afraid that if I did I would trip and be rolled over, so I keep my head forward and put in an extra burst of speed.

My heart was pounding in my ears, my breath was coming up short, I was beginning to tire, but I forced myself to keep running. There were countless other passages around us as we ran, but there was no way for us to reach them before the Onix overtook us. Then, further ahead, I spotted what seemed like an opening to a smaller tunnel. One that, hopefully, the Onix wouldn't be able to follow us through.

"Through there!" I puffed.

Karen nodded and the three of us sprinted for it. I didn't bother trying to climb through. I just dove, gliding cleanly through the hole and hitting the ground on the other side. Karen jumped through and Mitchell struggled to get in. Behind him, I saw the Onix charging closer and closer. I jumped up and ran over, taking a hold of Mitchell's sleeve and yanking. He fell inside, the two of us tumbling to the dirt, as the Onix's head bashed into the wall, causing a tremor to reverberate through the tunnel we found ourselves in now. The three of us back away from the entrance we had come through, watching nervously as the Onix repeatedly bashed its head into the wall. The rock began to splinter, cracks spider-webbing through the wall. Finally, when it seemed like it was about to smash through, its stopped. The Pokemon lowered its head and peered into the hole, glaring at us from beyond it, before lifting its head and leaving.

I stood there, panting, leaning against a wall, Mitchell slumped to the ground, and Karen leaned over, putting her hands on her knees.

"Well, that was... exciting," she puffed.

"It was something... alright," I chuckled between breaths.

Mitchell let loose an exasperated cry and we laughed. After having caught my breath, I pushed off the wall.

"I think that's enough excitement for one day," I said, wiping sweat from by brow.

"Tell me about it," Karen said, "let's get out of-"

She stopped short when we heard a deep rumbling. It gradually became louder and louder. I glanced to the side, toward the hole I had dove through, and stiffened at the sight of a wall of grey rushing toward it.

"Oh, crap, run!"

Karen and I were already sprinting down the tunnel, Mitchell scrambling to his feet, when the Onix shattered the rock wall, sending pieces of it flying every which way, as it came for us.

"Come on, Mitchell, hurry up!" I shouted.

"I'm trying, I'm-" His words were cut off when he tripped, fell, and was instantly rolled over by the Onix's body.

"_Mitchell!"_

"No!"

I turned back around, something stabbing into my chest. First Rattata, now Mitchell. Who else is going to die?

"Jack, over there!"

I followed where Karen was pointing, at a tunnel that cut off to the right. We ran for it and just managed to dive inside when the Onix zoomed past the entrance, and kept going. We waited, trying to catch our breath, listening as the Onix went deeper into its network of tunnels, and we couldn't hear it anymore.

"Oh, no, Mitchell," Karen whispered.

"Dammit!" I slammed a fist on the wall behind me, gritting my teeth. How could I have let this happen? Why didn't I haul him to his feet when the Onix came back? If I had, maybe he would still be alive.

Karen stepped around me, moving toward the entrance.

"Karen, don't look."

Not heeding my words, she leaned out and looked back the way we came. Her next words puzzled me to no end.

"Where'd he go?"

"Huh?"

I moved to the entrance as well, peering out. She was right. Mitchell wasn't there. If the Onix had run over him, then he should have been flattened, in the middle of the tunnel. But, nothing.

"He's... not there."

Then a thought came to me, and it was a horrendous though: what if he got stuck between the rocks that made up the Onix's body.

"Do you think...?"

Karen apparently thought the same thing.

I slumped against a wall. "It's all my fault..."

"What?" Karen stepped closer. "No, Jack, don't you dare blame yourself for this."

"If I had only pulled him up instead of just running by-"

"No, Jack." Karen cupped my face in her hands and forced me to look into her eyes. "It. Wasn't. Your. Fault. Okay?"

"But it was."

"Dammit, Jack-"

She stopped when there were the sounds of shuffling. We looked down the tunnel, eyeing a depression warily, and a head popped up.

"Hiya! Watcha doin' there?"

Karen and I gaped at Mitchell, perfectly fine, and alive.

Karen spluttered for words and I found myself without any.

"B-but, you... we thought you were... the Onix... you're alive?"

Mitchell climbed out of the hole in the ground, dusting himself off, before beaming. "Yup. Never woulda though holes would come in handy like that."

Karen stared, slack-jawed, eyebrow twitching, before something in her expression changed. She clenched her fists, gritted her teeth, stooped down and picked up a small, smooth rock. She pulled back and let it fly. The rock zoomed toward Mitchell, who was still grinning goofily, and it struck him right in the forehead. He cried out in surprise and fell back, teetering at the edge of the hole he had climbed out of before falling inside.

"Dammit, Mitchell, you made us worry, and, and... arrgh!"

Mitchell popped up, rubbing the lump on his head. "Aw, I love you, too."

With another exasperated shout, Karen stomped away, I felt a whoosh of air, and there was an incredibly loud crash literally right next to me. I jumped away, staring at the rock that had apparently been knocked loosed form the ceiling, then looked up. I raised my eyebrows.

There, on the ceiling, where the rock apparently had been, was a gaping hole, the night sky beyond visible through it.

"An exit!" Mitchell whooped. He jumped out of the hole and trotted over to the wall, beginning to climb it.

"You think its safe?" Karen asked, stepping up next to me.

"Only one way to find out." I stepped forward, sweeping my arm in an exaggerated gesture. "Ladies first."

"Aw, such a gentleman."

I helped Karen gain a foothold and soon she was climbing up, right behind Mitchell, easily finding handholds. I watched to make sure they wriggled through the hole safely before climbing up myself. It was easy, really. The many tunnels that had been dug by the Onix provided excellent hand and footholds.

Thirty seconds later, I pushed my torso through the hole, and with Karen's help hauled myself up. We had come up to a small plateau, not unlike the one where Team Rocket had found the cave entrance, and the mountain sloped downward for a very long way. At the foot of the mountain I could just make out what looked like a person walking down the path leading away from Mt. Moon.

Mitchell jogged forward and threw his arms wide, sucking in a deep breath. "Oh, how glorious it is to get some fresh air!"

"I'm just glad we got out of there," Karen commented, taking off her hat and fanning her self with it. "It was pretty stuffy in there."

I gazed up at the sky, at the moon that had risen. "We were in there for a long time. It was morning when we left the Pokemon Center, and now it's dark."

"Ooh, Jack, look!" Karen exclaimed, "I think it's Cerulean City!"

I looked to where she was pointing and, in the distance, I could just barely see shining lights. "Seems like it."

"Aha!" Mitchell slung off his bag-a messenger the bag, kinda like Karen's, except it was dark gray-and dug around in it before pulling something out. A pair of... binoculars?

He put them to his eyes as I asked, "Where'd you get binoculars?" They seemed like high-powered ones, the kinds used for scouting, and expensive.

Without looking back, Mitchell said, "Oh, I took them from one of the benches those guys had."

I remembered that the Team Rocket goons did have workbenches in the cave, but I didn't remember seeing any binoculars.

"Here, have a look," Mitchell offered, handing them to me. I hesitantly took them and put them to my eyes. The distant lights instantly came a lot closer. Slowly scanning the binoculars from side to side I made out that it was a city, most likely Cerulean.

"Ooh, ooh, I wanna see, I wanna see!" Karen hopped up and down, taking hold of my arm. I obliged, giving her the binos, and she looked through them, cooing in wonder. "Oh, this is _so _cool!" She angled them down, toward the path at the base of Mt. Moon. "Oh, hey, that's Gary!"

"What?" I took binos and looked through them, aiming them below, at the person strolling calmly along. I had to turn the knob on the top, bringing the figures unruly spiked hair into focus. Then I saw their black shirt and telltale purple pants and grunted. "Huh, it really is Gary."

"Who's Gary?" Mitchell asked.

"A friend of ours," Karen replied as I put down the binoculars.

"Here," I said, giving the back to Mitchell.

"Nah, it's okay, you can keep 'em," he said, placing his hands behind his head in such a relaxed posture.

"Really?"

"Yeah. It's not like I have much use for 'em."

"Um, okay." I shared a glance with Karen, who shrugged, and turned back to thank him when I stopped, staring.

Mitchell was now doing a handstand.

"Uh, what are you doing?"

"I'm doing a handstand, silly goose!" Mitchell replied enthusiastically, turning around to face us while remaining upside down.

"Ooh, I want to do a handstand!" Karen said.

"Join the party!"

Karen stooped forward, placed her hands on the ground, and I caught her legs as they swung up.

"Jack?"

"Karen, I really don't think you should do a handstand."

"And why the hell not?" she asked, puffing out her cheeks.

_That is so cute._ I gave a quick shake of my head to get rid of _that _thought. "Well, for one, you're wearing skirt. And a pretty short one at that."

"Ah, don't worry about it," Karen said, yanking her legs free and going into the handstand. I immediately looked away.

"Dammit, Karen!" I glanced down at Mitchell, who was staring at her, and was sorely tempted to either shout at him to have some decency and look away or just kick him in the face. I was contemplating the second one when Karen said, "It's alright, Jack, quit being such a worry wart."

"What the hell are you talking about? You're wearing a skirt, and you're doing a handstand. I am _not_ looking!"

"Jack, just turn around."

"No!" A terrible heat raced across my face.

"Dude, turn around," Mitchell's voice came from below.

I glared at him and was pulling my leg back to kick when Karen said, "It's also a pair of short's."

I stopped at mid-kick. "Are you sure?"

"Yep," Mitchell answered for her.

I glared at him so more before ever so slowly inching my head around. As Karen said, she had shorts underneath her skirt. No, wait, they seemed to be... together. Her skirt had fallen around her hips as she performed her handstand, revealing the other part of it, shorts that came to mid-thigh and were the came color as the skirt.

"They're shirts! Hang on... skorts!"

"Skorts... I still don't think I should be looking," I said, turning away.

Karen and Mitchell laughed, prompting them to lose their balance and tumble to the ground.

"Ow, I landed on a rock," Karen groaned, sitting up.

They stood, dusting themselves off, as I put the binoculars away in my backpack and studied the side of the mountain.

"How are we gonna get down."

Karen and Mitchell paused and looked down, too.

"Well, that is a predicament," Mitchell said.

Karen shrugged. "Why don't we just climb? It doesn't seem to steep."

Mitchell and I glanced at her, at each other, and said, "What the hell."

* * *

One arduous, exhausting hour later, I let myself slide and hopped down from a ledge onto the grass below, Karen and Mitchell close behind.

"Well, that was certainly exciting," Mitchell said, rubbing his shoulder.

"That's one way of putting it," Karen grumbled as she took off her hat and shook leaves and dirt from her hair.

I dusted myself off, and picked a leaf from under my cap. I flicked it away, saying, "At least we got down without too much trouble."

"Yeah, but man, I am _bushed_," Mitchell groaned, slumping to the grass.

"Well, now that we're down, we might as well get on going," I suggested.

Karen sighed and stood. "Alright, but we're finding somewhere to camp. I'm too tired to think right now."

"Coming, Mitchell?" I asked.

"It's okay," he said from his spot lying down on the grass. "I'm gonna wait for Olivia here. She should get through eventually."

Karen and I shared a look. Did he know that Olivia's Butterfree was dead? I didn't think either of us wanted to tell him, so I nodded.

"Alright, then. See you later, Mitchell."

He waved before closing his eyes

"Admit it, Jack, you like Mitchell," Karen said some time later.

"He's been through a lot today," I said simply.

"Which translates to, 'Why of course, Karen, he's a super cool guy'," she said in a poor imitation of my voice.

"Shut up," I said, unable help the grin that spread over my face.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Come on, guys. I know there are some of you out there that truly like this story. So how come you don't leave some reviews? Pretty please? If you don't, I'll sneak into your room when you're sleeping and stare at you until you review. Yeah, wouldn't want that, do you? So, y'know, review. Unless you want some creepy guy watching you sleep. Hang on... never mind, don't want to be anything like a certain stalker vampire. But, seriously, review. Or I'll sic a sparkling vampire on you, and it will be so horrifying.


	14. On the Way to Cerulean

Chapter 14-On the Way to Cerulean

Almost two months before an update... Sorry about that, guys. Kinda lost motivation there. That, and the ever-horrifying writer's block. But do not fret, for I will start on the next chapter right away. And a couple other stories I'm working on. Look forward to those. Now let's get started...!

* * *

Mitchell sat on the grass outside Mt. Moon, leaning against the rock. He tossed a sitrus berry up and down, back and forth. He was kinda surprised. He didn't at all think tossing a berry around like this could be so much fun! He tossed it up a few more times before an idea popped into his head. He tossed it up once more, with just a little more force, and opened his mouth wide. The berry went up, then came down and hit Mitchell's nose.

"Oh!"

The berry bounced off and rolled away, and Mitchell scrambled after it. "No, berry, get back here!" It rolled under a bush and Mitchell dropped down. "No, Mr. Berry, come back! I have to eat yoooooou!" He shoved his hand in and searched for the berry. He felt something round and, with a triumphant "Aha!" yanked it out. But then he noticed, this wasn't his berry! This was an oran berry, not a sitrus! Where's the sitrus? He shoved his back inside, looked around some more, and pulled out another round thing. Success! His sitrus berry!

"Yes! I found you, Mr. Berry! I hereby name you... uh... George! And you..." he glanced at the oran. "Mike!"

He then proceeded to toss the berries up and down, back and a couple of seconds, he dropped one and it rolled under the bush.

"Ah, dangit!"

Mitchell dropped down and fished it back out, just as he felt a thump on his head. He yelped in surprised and turned to the apple that had fallen.

"Sweet."

He snatched up the apple, cradling his haul in his arm, and plopped back down at his spot, up against the rock. He smirked, readied the fruits, and began to juggle them, tongue sticking out of the side of his mouth.

"Yay for juggling!" he exclaimed, eyes zipping between the fruit.

He managed the keep them in the air without screwing up and dropping them, and it bolstered his confidence enough that he shifted around, coming up to his knees. Still juggling, tongue sticking out, Mitchell slowly got to his feet. Success!

A few seconds later, he began humming a tune. The ever-familiar circus tune!

"Circus guy, circus guy, circus guy..." He juggled some more, swaying back and forth to keep his balance- Time for another tune! "Zipidee doo da, zipidee ay, my oh my, what a wonderful-"

His skippy melody was cut short when there was a great tremor and the rock wall of Mt. Moon exploded outward, and a giant creature came barreling out. It took several heavy steps before coming to a stop and glancing around. Mitchell had immediately jumped over the bush, and warily watched the Pokemon. It was huge, six feet tall and powerfully built. Its thick hide was a deep blue hue, and stomach and snout a sandy beige. Its thick tail swished back and forth, and he noticed the horn on its head when it turned to look into the hole it had just made. He could see the Pokemon's nostril flare and it turned in his direction.

_Crap! _Mitchell ducked down, taking a Pokeball from his belt. _What's this thing doing here? I didn't think there any in Mt. Moon! _ He felt the ground shake beneath a little at each of the Pokemon's steps. _Oh, no, it's coming here! What does it-_ He remembered the berries. _Crap, is that why? _He peered around the bush at the Pokemon. It had stopped and was now sniffing the air. Mitchell moved back behind his hiding spit. What if it wanted more than berries? This bush wouldn't give him much protection. If it found him, he would have to fight.

Mitchell gripped the Pokeball tighter, ready to out his Pokemon, and a voice came from inside the hole the Pokemon had come from.

"Good job, Nidoqueen."

Mitchell's eyes widened. _Is that...?_

He peered around the bush again as someone walked through the dust. The person stepped into view and Mitchell jumped up.

"Olivia!"

Olivia's head snapped to him and he saw that her eyes were red and puffy. But why? Had she been... crying? Why?

Mitchell trotted over to her, not sparing a glance at the Pokemon that had just ten seconds before scared the crap out of him. He stopped just in front of Olivia.

"It's about time!" he exclaimed. "Do you know how long I've been waiting here? Three days! Okay, more like a few hours, but still. My butt hurts from sitting for so-"

A resounding slap rang out and Mitchell's head snapped to the side. He turned back to Olivia, rubbing his stinging cheek. "Aw, I love you, too."

Olivia then pulled him into a tight embrace and she... she was sobbing? Gee wilikers, she was crying! Wait, why?

"I thought you were dead!" Olivia cried between sobs.

"Dead?" Mitchell echoed. He frowned, Olivia's tears staining his shirt. "Why did you-" Oh, right, the cave-in!

"Because, the, the cave blew up, and you and Jack were inside, and it caved in, and, and I thought you were dead! I was looking for you-I even evolved Nidorina to help-but... but... I couldn't find you!" The rest of her words dissolved into sobs that wracked her body.

Mitchell watched her, his friend of almost seven years now, as she cried onto his shoulder. He had never seen her like... like this. So vulnerable. She was normally a strong girl, not needing anyone to help her, so seeing her like this... Well, Mitchell was at a loss. He knew he should do something, anything, to comfort her, but he had no idea what. No girl had ever cried on his shoulder like this.

Finally, he decided the best thing to do was to wrap his arms around her. He immediately felt her weaken a little. Some time later, he wasn't sure how long, her sobs came to a stop.

"Are... you okay?" he asked her.

Olivia didn't respond at first, keeping Mitchell in her tight embrace. Finally, she pulled away, wiping her eyes. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just so glad you're alive." She looked around as Nidoqueen stepped closer. Mitchell jumped a little, looking up at the Pokemon. "Where's Jack? Is he..." More tears threatened to spill, and Mitchell frantically waved his arms as if to dispel her worries.

"No, no, he's alive! Him and Karen left for Cerulean City last night."

Olivia stared at him, doe-eyed, and she slid to her knees. "Thank God..."

Mitchell slid his hands into his jeans' pockets and kicked at the grass, feeling all around awkward.

Olivia stood, breathing shakily, "I'm so glad you're alive."

"Yeah, me, too," Mitchell said, rubbing the back of his neck. He turned to Nidoqueen. "Hiya, Nidorin-eh, Nidoqueen. How ya doin'?"

Nidoqueen bent down and ran her tongue over his face. Mitchell actually found kinda cute, and ticklish! She licked him again and Mitchell laughed. He glanced over as Olivia shuffled closer, sunken eyes and looking ragged, and he remembered that her Butterfree was dead.

"I'm sorry about Butterfree."

Olivia only nodded. She placed a hand on Nidoqueen's hide. "Thanks a lot, Nidoqueen."

Her Pokemon nuzzled her, whimpering softly. Olivia recalled her to her Pokeball and let her hand fall.

Figuring he should do something, Mitchell moved forward and put an arm around her shoulder. "C'mon, Liv, let's find somewhere to set up camp."

He led her away from Mt. Moon, from what he would from now on see as a landmark of tragedy.

* * *

"Karen."

"Yes, Jack?"

"Let me ask you something."

"Ask away!"

"_Why_ are you riding on my back?"

Karen giggled. "'Cause I'm tired. Duh!" She playfully slapped the back of my head. Bulbasaur, who was resting on Karen's head, mimicked her, using a vine to slap me.

"Why do I always end up carrying everything?" I grumbled. Charmeleon huffed at my side, growling, and Bulbasaur smacked him, too. Charmeleon stumbled and looked up disdainfully, rubbing his head, and Bulbasaur shrank out of view, snickering.

I had been walking along peacefully, Charmeleon at my side, a small river gurgling by, when I had noticed Karen wasn't walking next to me. I was about to turn to look for her when suddenly she jumped on my back, laughing like the madwoman she was. I tried getting her to get the hell off, but she wouldn't have it. She wrapped her arms around my neck and held on for dear life whenever I tried shaking her off, laughing all the while. Finally, I gave up and hooked my hands under her knees, continuing along the path, grunting when Bulbasaur hopped on top of Karen. At some point, Karen had fallen asleep, and I grumbled that I wasn't a freakin' pack Tauros. Karen wasn't heavy at all-she was one of the lightest people I've ever met-but even so, my arms were really getting tired. She kept sliding down, and it was becoming harder and harder to pull her up and keep her there.

Fortunately, Karen woke up, lifting her arms from around my neck. She yawned and stretched, which turned out to be a bad idea. As soon as she did, she leaned back a little too far, I lost my balance, and with yelps that sounded about the same, we tumbled to the dirt while Bulbasaur jumped away.

"Karen, what the hell!"

"Me? You were supposed to hold me up!"

"It's not my fault you leaned so far back!"

After some struggling, in which our starters came over and watched helplessly, we managed to disentangle ourselves from one another and got to our feet.

Karen crossed her arms and huffed, turning away. "Don't go blaming me because you weren't strong enough to-"

We had come to be right next to the river, and Karen was standing right at the bank, so when the ground underneath her foot gave way, she gave a yelp and fell right in.

"Karen!"

I dove forward and extended my hand, but wasn't fast enough. My fingers just brushed against hers before she was swept away. I hadn't noticed until then, but the river was going faster now. Fast enough that they were almost rapids.

"Jack! Jack, help!"

I jumped up and sprinted after her, Charmeleon and Bulbasaur right behind me. "Hang on!"

She was pulled completely under and my heart skipped a beat.

"Karen!"

Then she bobbed back up to the surface, spluttering and gasping. "Help!"

I frantically thought over what I could do. There wasn't anything nearby that I could use to pull her in, nor were any rocks that she could anchor herself to until I could get to her. Neither of us had any Water-types, so that was out of-

No, wait, I had a Water-type!

I snatched up a Pokeball from my belt and tossed it out over the river. It snapped open and the Pokemon plopped into the water.

"Magikarp, after her!" I said, pointing at Karen as she struggled to stay afloat.

To my surprise, Magikarp actually did as I said, shooting off after Karen. I shook my head to clear the surprise, and kept sprinting after them. Magikarp dove just as Karen was pulled underwater.

"Karen!"

Several seconds passed, where I began to worry that she wouldn't come back up, when she broke the surface again, gasping and arms wrapped around Magikarp's orange body.

"Magikarp, bring her over here!" I shouted.

Magikarp turned in the water and began struggling for the bank, Karen in tow. But the current was too strong. No matter how hard he swam, he couldn't get to the bank and was pulled along the river. Then they were both pulled under again.

"Dammit, dammit, dammit, what do I do?"

I suddenly heard a roaring sound, and I looked downriver. My mouth dropped open. In the distance, the river suddenly dropped down, and a white spray floated above it.

A waterfall.

"Crap!"

I forced myself to sprint faster, and just ahead I saw something that might help. Karen surfaced again, this time with Magikarp nowhere in sight. I called out for him, but he didn't surface.

"He's under me!" Karen shouted around the water in her mouth. "He's keeping me up!"

_Good job, Magikarp_, I thought as I dashed toward the tree. It was pretty thick, and branch hung over the water. I realized that the branch wasn't far enough out over the river, so I shouted for Charmeleon to use Iron Tail to move a little to the side. He ran forward and attacked it, and it worked. I ran for the tree, keeping an eye on Karen as she was pushed closer. I jumped and pulled myself up, shimmying across the branch. I glanced over my shoulder to gauge the distance from Karen, and carefully hauled myself up to sit on the branch. I tightened the muscles in my legs and slowly let myself fall back. I was now hanging upside down, and stretched my arms out to reach for Karen the second she passed underneath me.

She rapidly came closer and closer, drenched and watching for the moment to reach up.

"C'mon, Karen, grab my hand!" I shouted, blood rushing to my head.

She came directly underneath me and I grabbed for her hand, and was able to grip three of her fingers.

"Hang on, Karen!"

"I'm trying!"

Her other hand came up to take hold of my arm, but with the sudden shift in weight, I glimpsed Magikarp's orange form yanked away underwater. The current was stronger, which could only mean the waterfall was nearby, and was a long drop. My free hand went to my belt for Magikarp's Pokeball, and Karen's wet hand slipped from my grasp. Bulbasaur's vine shot forward and wrapped around her wrist, but it proved to slippery for her, too. With a shriek Karen plunged back into the water and was carried away.

"Karen!"

I heard a sharp crack and my head snapped to the tree. The branch I hung from seemed to dip a little. There was another crack, and the base of it, where it met the trunk of the tree, splintered. I only had the time to let out a single, "Crap," before the branch snapped and I fell, bracing myself to hit the water.

I suddenly felt something curl around my ankle and my fall was cut short. I stared at the river inches from my nose, wide-eyed, before looking down. Eh, up, in this case. Wrapped around my ankled was a dark green vine. I glanced toward the bank, at Bulbasaur. One of her vines was extended from her bulb, and it went up, around a branch, and came down to me. Charmeleon held onto Bulbasaur, helping her keep me above the water. I smiled and swung around to face downriver.

Just in time to see Karen plummet over the waterfall.

"_Karen!_"

I gaped at where the edge where the water dropped, hardly hearing Bulbasaur's cries. My eyes began to prickle and I blinked it away. I swung myself around to face the bank and began to sway my arms back and forth, all the while fighting to push down the lump in my throat. I swung back and pushed forward when I built up enough momentum, Bulbasaur let go, and I fell onto the dirt. I lay there, breathing heavily, and forced the lump away when it returned. Charmeleon came over and touched his snout to my side. I looked up at him, then at Bulbasaur. Her eyes were brimming with moisture.

My fingers curled into a shaking fist. I slammed it onto the ground, letting out a scream.

"_Damn it_!"

Bulbasaur came over and prodded me with her nose. I couldn't look at her. I just couldn't, not after failing to save her Trainer. I looked over to the waterfall and pushed myself to my feet. On shaky legs, I moved toward the edge of the cliff. I slid to my knees and fell forward on my hands, closing my eyes. I didn't want to look, not at all, but... I had to make sure...

I slowly cracked an eye open, then the other. I was fully expecting to see Karen floating in the water, unmoving.

She was.

I bit down on my tongue to keep from screaming and closed my eyes again. She seemed fine, uninjured, floating face up and drifting away from where the falls hit the water. But what if she was hurt in ways I couldn't see? Broken bones, internal bleeding...?

I forced my eyes to open and my jaw went slack. The waterfall dropped into a small lake, with a gentler river snaking away at the far end. But it was when I took a good look at the waterfall that I felt like a completely stupid idiot.

The drop was only like ten feet.

_Well, I feel stupid._

Still, that didn't mean Karen was totally uninjured. I had to make sure.

"Karen!" I called to her.

Her eyes slid open and went to me. She raised a hand, water dripping off it, and waved. Then Magikarp jumped out of the water, arcing over Karen as he plopped back down into the water. I heaved a sigh and collapsed, my head hanging over the edge.

* * *

I made my way down a road that led down to the lake, followed by Charmeleon and Bulbasaur, and stopped by the edge. Karen listed in the center, arms and legs splayed, water lapping gently at her.

"Dammit, Karen, you scared me half to death."

"Sorry 'bout that," she responded lazily.

I shook my head and sighed. "Well, get back here. It's getting dark, and you might catch a cold.

"Nag, nag, nag, that's all you ever do." Regardless, she flipped over and paddled for shore. "You wanted me to come to land, help me up," she said, reaching a hand up.

"Always so damn pushy," I muttered, taking hold of her hand, right before Karen's lips curled in a devilish smirk. I saw it too late and was unable to do anything as she yanked hard and I splashed into the water with her. I kicked to the surface, spitting out water, as Karen laughed like a maniac.

"You should have seen your face!" she exclaimed. "It was priceless!"

"I'm gonna get you for this," I said matter-of-factly.

"Oh, really!"

"Yes."

"Oh, please, Jack. You always sucked at pranks."

"Did not."

"What about that time when you tried to scare Professor Oak and ended up freeing the Pokemon he captured to study?"

"Accident."

"And the time you tried to rig a bucket of water to fall on me when I opened my bedroom door, and it fell on you?"

"Accident."

"What about when you tried to scare Gary with a Gengar mask and ended up in a mud pit?"

"That, uh, was an accident."

"What about when-"

I clamped a hand over her mouth. "Alright, already, I get it."

Karen grinned triumphantly.

"I'm just glad you're alive."

Her grin fell and she looked down, at her reflection in the water. "It was pretty stupid of me to lean back like that. I'm sorry."

"It wasn't your fault," I said. "I should have held on harder."

"Don't go blaming yourself for this, Jack," Karen said, treading closer and wrapping her arms around my shoulders. "Thanks, though."

I patted her back. "Anything for you."

She moved away and went to the edge of the lake. "Well, come on, you said it yourself. We could catch a cold."

I nodded and was about to move forward when I noticed out of the corner of my eye a shadow rapidly approaching form underwater. My head snapped down and I braced myself for an attack. Karen noticed and came closer.

"Stay back!" I barked just as something leaped out of the water. It whirled in the air, and what looked like a fin came hurtling toward me. It smacked into the back of my head and pushed me forward. "Ow! What the-"

Whatever it was plopped back into the water and surfaced again. Magikarp laughed and Karen joined him.

"He got you there," she giggled.

"Shut up," I said, rubbing my head, before turning to Magikarp. "That hurt you know."

"Gweh-heh-heh!"

* * *

"Alright, Charmeleon, light it up."

A puff of a fireball jumped from my starter's mouth and onto the firewood, lighting it. In a few short minutes we had a fire going.

The sun was setting, bathing the lake and surrounding forrest in orange. Karen and I had emptied out our packs and set the stuff aside while we hung them to dry on a tree branch. But then I realized we had a bit of a problem.

"I don't have any dry clothes."

"Me neither," Karen sighed."Well, might as well get out of these ones." She began lifting her top.

"What the hell are you doing?"

She stopped just above her belly button. "What?"

"You're really gonna just change right here?"

"Oh, c'mon, Jack. It's not like we haven't seen each other in underwear before."

"Well, yeah," I admitted, thinking of the time we would swim in the ocean just south of Pallet Town when we were little, "but this is different."

"What do you mean?"

"Well..." I swiped my arm out in a vague gesture over the wilderness. "It's just us out here."

Karen frowned. "Um... you do sorta have a point..."

I raised an eyebrow.

"I'll go behind the tree, then." She did so, Bulbasaur on her shoulder, and I let out a breath.

She was right. We weren't strangers to seeing the other in underwear-little kids have an odd habit of doing that-but now... I don't know. It was just a little weird. With a frown of my own, I picked through the soaked contents of my pack and spread them out. The T-shirt and shorts I usually wore to sleep were completely drenched. The envelope of prize money, thankfully, escaped the worst of it, but the same couldn't be said of my Pokedex. I picked it up and turned it around, inspecting it. It didn't seem damaged, but then again, I was not technician. I flipped it open and pressed the power button. I waited with bated breath for it to turn on. There was a whirring coming from inside it, and shook it a little to see if there was still any water inside it. There was, a little, and it dripped onto the grass. I waited a few more seconds and, to my relief, the Pokedex powered on. There was the symbol of a Pokeball on the screen before it disappeared, leaving the menu in its place. I pressed the button to make sure they were working properly, and once I was satisfied, I closed it and set it down.

I lifted my spare clothes and frowned at them. They were still dripping, so I wrung them out as best as I could. Still not dry enough to wear. I scowled and thought over what I could do. An idea popped into my head and I called Charmeleon over.

I placed my hand on his flank and nodded. He was warm enough. " Hold still." I draped my clothes over him and he growled questioningly. "Don't worry, Charmeleon, I just wanna dry them." He nodded and stood awkwardly, my clothes hanging off him. I kicked off my shoes and socks, placing them near the fire, and sat against the tree to wait in my wet clothes.

"Hey, Jack?"

I craned my neck around Karen, who peered from around the trunk. I saw that her hat hung from the end of the branch she had placed her bag ong.

"Think you can put these on Charmeleon?" She held out her sweatpants and a tank top, both wet. I took them and she uttered a quick, "Thanks," before ducking back behind the tree. I lay them over Charmeleon's body like my own clothes, and he lowered himself to lay on his belly on the ground. After some silence, where the only noises where the crackling of the fire, some Pokemon's calls, and Charmeleon's breath, Karen's voice drifted around the tree to me.

"Are they dry yet?"

I reached over and touched our clothes. "Not yet," I reported.

"Tell me when they are."

More quiet. I took of my cap and set it near the fire, next to my shoes, and rested my head on the bark.

"Jack?" came Karen's voice again.

"Yeah?"

She paused. "Why'd you want me to change here?"

My eyes were lulled shut by the warmth of the fire. "I told you. It's just us out here. That'd be kinda weird, changing in front of each other, don't you think?"

"But..." She paused again. I didn't need to see her to know she was frowning. "Remember when we used to swim in the ocean when we were little?"

"What about it?"

"Well, we swam in our underwear sometimes, and we were alone most of the time, too."

Damn.

"This, uh, this is different."

"How?"

"Well... I, uh... I... that is, we... and you... um... shut up."

I tried to keep my mind off how stupid I sounded by reaching over to check our clothes. Not dry yet. I leaned back with a sigh, saw something out of the corner of my eyes and jumped. Standing by the tree, a hand resting on the trunk, stood Karen. In her _underwear_.

"What the hell are you doing?" I asked, doing my best to look away as casually as possible.

"Are the clothes ready?"

I shook my head and she padded closer. I made it a point to stare straight ahead over the lake as she sat down next to me. In her _underwear_.

"Y'know, you really should get out of those clothes. You could get sick."

"I'll be fine."

"But you said so yourself that-"

"I'll be fine."

"You're gonna get sick if you don't-"

"I'll be fine."

"No, you won't be fine!"

"I'll be fine."

"You're so damn stubborn," she growled. "Fine, if you won't take 'em off..."

Karen lunged and tried to undo the buttons on my shirt.

I let out a very unmanly yelp and jumped away. "What the hell are you doing?"

"You gotta get out of those clothes, Jack. You'll get sick."

"I know that," I snapped, scooting away. "But I can do it myself."

"Fine, then!"

I leaned my head back on the tree, enjoying in the warmth of the fire.

"Well?"

"Well, what?"

"Take your clothes off!"

"I will not." I couldn't help the heat rising in my face.

"Alright, fine." With a huff, she crossed her arms and looked away. "Get sick if you want.".

I glance at her, then let out a frustrated rush of breath. I unbuttoned my shirt and slipped it off, tossing over a branch, and slid out of the black undershirt, tossing it up as well.

All was silent. I was beginning to get drowsy, just a little. Okay, a lot. It was getting difficult to keep my eyes open. I actually fell into a light doze, and jumped when Karen poked me in the side.

"Are the clothes ready?"

I ran a hand over my face to wake myself up and reached over to a dozing Charmeleon. I prodded my clothes gently, and he cracked open an eye. "Yeah, they're done." I took the clothes and handed Karen hers before grabbing a pair of boxers that had somehow miraculously escaped being soaked through. They were a little damp, but the fire had taken care of that. I took my clothes and went behind the tree to change. When I came back Karen had already gotten dressed and Bulbasaur rested on her lap.

I sat next to her and patted my clothes. Completely dry. "One of the advantages of having a Fire-type, I guess."

"Definitely," Karen agreed.

I for one was just thankful of having escaped the awkwardness that had hung heavily just earlier. Looking at Karen, though, she didn't seem to feel the same. At all. Looking at it from her view, it wasn't too weird. Well, it was for me. But I couldn't deny she was right. All the times we had gone swimming as little kids... Karen was right. But it was... weird now.

_Dammit, now I can't stop thinking about it. Alright, just, just think about... ice cream. Yeah, vanilla ice cream... Oh, damn, now I want some ice cream..._

My eyes slid open when something fell on my shoulder. I glanced over. Karen had fallen asleep, her head resting on my shoulder. Bulbasaur had gone to lay on the ground next to her, and both her and Charmeleon were sleeping. I smiled at them, my greatest friends. I gave Karen's hand a quick squeeze before resting my head back on the tree and surrendering myself to slumber.

* * *

The next morning found Karen and I, packed up and on the road again. Karen was fiddling with her Pokedex, making sure it still worked.

"Huh? What the... Oh, right, this one... then what does this one... Oh. And this one... alright..."

I raised and eyebrow. She was pressing buttons randomly. At least it seemed randomly.

"What are you doing?"

She ignored me, still messing around with the Dex. She pursed her lips, stuck her tongue out, then grinned. I was immediately on guard. I had seen that grin before. It was the kind of grin that usually led to us getting into trouble when we were younger.

"Why are you smiling like that?"

"Check it out."

She aimed her Pokedex at a Spearow preening itself on a branch. The Pokedex whirred, and when the mechanical voice didn't come, I glanced over curiously.

"Why didn't-"

Karen suddenly thrust her Pokedex in my face, showing me the screen. "Look, I turned it off!"

"Turned what off?"

"That voice!" She took her Dex back, gushing over it. "I turned off the voice that comes when-" She stopped and frowned, staring at her Pokedex.

"What's wrong?" I asked, trying to get a look at the screen.

"What the hell? That's not a Pidgey..."

"Eh?"

"Look." Again, she thrust her Pokedex in my face. I took a good look at the screen, and saw that it didn't show a Spearow, but a Pidgey instead. I glanced up at the bird. No, it's definitely a Spearow. So, why...?

"Try it again."

Karen aimed her Dex at the bird, the little machine whirred, and Karen scowled. "What the hell? Now it says it's a Fearow!"

"Fearow."

"Yes, Fearow!" Karen tried again, her Dex whirred, and she let out a shout that sounded like surprised and frustration at once. "Oh, come one! Now it's a Kangaskhan!"

She showed me and I peered closer at the screen. It definitely showed the large Pokemon, along with its general information, preferred habitat, and diet. I scowled and looked up at the Spearow, which was peering at us, head cocked. "Kinda small for a Kangaskhan..."

"Try yours."

I took my Pokedex from my jeans pocket and scanned the Spearow. I scowled at the results.

"What's it say?" Karen asked, trying to look over my shoulder.

"Says it's a... Gyarados."

"Well, that's not right."

"Something's wrong with our Pokedexes," I stated after scanning the bird again and the result was a Rhydon.

"Could it be because we fell in the water with them."

I nodded. "Has to be."

"But..." Karen turned away, lips pursed. "Wouldn't Professor Oak water-proof them?"

I slipped my Pokedex back into my pocket. "Maybe he didn't have time to."

"Well, maybe it's not so bad!" Karen said, brightening. "Maybe he has more?"

I shook my head. "I don't think so. I... I don't remember seeing any others in the lab when we got them."

Karen's smile was frozen on her face. Then it fell and she hung her head. "We're in trouble."

I pinched the bridge of my nose. "We're in trouble," I repeated.

* * *

**Author's Note:** So, judging by the traffic stats and emails I get from the site, people are liking my oneshots, particularly Insane, a whole lot more than my main story. Seems this one just isn't as good. Come on, guys, I put a lot of effort into this one, the least you could do is skim through this one. And drop a review while you're at it. Pretty please? I'll give you a Pikachu and an Eevee if you do.


	15. A Modest Proposal

Chapter 15-A Modest Proposal

Two months without and update? I am ashamed of myself for putting you all through this wait. But here's my apology, and a quick riddle: what's better than a single update?

THREE UPDATES.

You're welcome.

* * *

"We're in trouble."

I pinched the bridged of my nose. "We're in trouble."

"What are we gonna do?" Karen asked, staring at her Pokedex forlornly, turning it around in her hand.

I shook my head. "I don't know." I thought over what we could do. Our Pokedexes were damaged by the water, and didn't recognized Pokemon properly. The only one that could fix them... "Professor Oak." Karen looked up, eyebrows raised quizzically. "Something's wrong with the Pokemon recognition software, and the only one that I can think of that could fix them is Professor Oak."

"Well, I guess, but there's no way to contact him or anything."

I crossed my arms and looked down. "Then we'll have to get to Cerulean City to call him."

"That's what I was afraid of," Karen whined.

"But we don't even know if he'll be able to fix them remotely." I closed my eyes and sighed. "For all we know, he might make us go all the way back to Pallet Town to get them fixed."

I looked at Karen to see her reaction. She stared straight at me, eyes wide, eye twitching, before letting out an angry shout.

"It's already September! It'll take us another week to get to Cerulean City, and we'll have to take another two months to get back to Pallet! No! No way am I going back after taking so long to get here! We've come to far to go back, Jack!" Her eyes were wide, panicked and... a little fearful?

I watched her as her breath came harder and her jaw clenched. "What's wrong?"

She scowled and turned away. "Nothing."

"No, it's not nothing." I stepped closer, hands in my pockets. "I can read you like a book, Karen, and something's got you mad. What's so wrong with going back to get our Pokedexes fixed?"

"I told you, nothing." With that she began walking, leaving me to wonder what that was about.

* * *

"It's coming toward you, Karen!"

"I see it! Pidgey!"

The little bird dive bombed the Arbok that slithered for Karen. Pidgey slammed into the snake, knocking it away. The Arbok hissed and spat a glob of purple-green stuff. The Acid attack just missed Pidgey by a feather as she wheeled away and landed on the ground at Karen's command of, "Sand Attack!" Pidgey flapped her wings vigorously, kicking up sand and blowing it into the snake's face. It reeled away, hissing again, and another hiss drew my attention to my fight.

Another Arbok, this one a golden yellow with blue markings on its hood, lunged for Charmeleon, who slammed Iron Tail into its face, knocking it to the dirt. The Arbok reared up, hissing, and Charmeleon fired Flamethrower. The Poison-type slithered away with a screech and Charmeleon lowered his stance, readying himself for the Arbok as it came back. It rushed forward, jaws open, but when Charmeleon slashed at it with his claws, it slithered to the side and kept on going toward me. I backpeddaled, tripped and fell. Fortunately, my fall threw off the Arbok's aim and it shot over my head, its body sliding over me. It recovered quickly, though, and came back, jaws extended and ready to bite down. It hissed, forked tongue flicking back and forth, Charmeleon rushed over, I heard a pained squawk and Karen's cries, and something brown shot out of the trees. The Arbok didn't even get the chance to look up when the object struck it on top of its head, knocking it to the ground and off of me.

I kicked it away and scrambled to my feet, ignoring the snake in favor of turning to Karen. Pidgey was wrapped up by the violet Arbok's tail, the snake's jaw poised to strike. The Arbok hissed and a thin, brown figure leapt from the trees, landing in front of the snake, and punched it with a crackling fist, and again with a fist covered in ice. The snake reeled away, releasing Pidgey, and whirled to attack the newcomer. It's jaws snapped open and the figure punched it again with a fiery fist.

The Arbok fell back and slammed into a tree, sliding down to the ground. It reared up, hissing, and the brown figure charged it. Then the shiny Arbok coiled its body up, shared a glance at the other one, and fast as lighting they slithered into the forest.

I watched the spot where they had disappeared to, and when they showed no sign of coming back, I turned to look at the one that saved me. It was about as tall as me, with three-fingered hands, large feet, and nothing on its face besides two eyes that stared at me.

Then the bushes began to shake again, and I called Charmeleon over, ready to attack. Two others jumped out, both dressed in white clothes, the kind worn when practicing martial arts in a dojo. Then my gaze fell to their waists and my mouth fell open.

They wore black belts.

"Dammit, Bruce, those Arbok got away!" one of them-who had a mess of brown hair-said to the other.

"Why are you blaming me?" the other one-this one with a bowl cut-shot back. "You're the one that was too slow, Chuck!"

The first one, Chuck, simply huffed. "Maybe if you punched and didn't bulk up your legs so much you couldn't run we could have gotten here in time."

"And if you kicked then your legs would be stronger and we would have gotten here earlier!"

"Um, excuse me?" Karen said.

The two of them were powerfully built, standing at over six feet tall and toned with thick muscle. Which is why, when they whirled on us, we took an involuntary step back. They glared at us for several moments, and I thought that they might attack us. I spread my legs and readied my lightly closed fists just in front of me. I knew that there was _no _way I could take on a black belt at my skill level, let alone two of them at once, but... I had to do what I could to keep Karen safe.

Now, imagine my surprise when both of them smiled amicably, spreading their arms in a friendly gesture.

"Hey, kids," the brown-haired one, Chuck, apparently, said. "You okay?"

"Um, yeah, we're fine," I answered hesitantly, Karen peeking around me.

"You're lucky we got here in time," the bowl-cut one, Bruce was his name, said. "Those Arbok have been attacking travelers recently, and we've been trying to get rid of them. They keep running away before we could finish 'em off, though," he added sheepishly.

The two Pokemon went to stand by their Trainer's side, the Hitmonchan with Chuck and Hitmonlee with Bruce, both just reaching their shoulders.

"Good job, Hitmonlee, you sure did a number on that yellow Arbok," Bruce said to his Pokemon, who only nodded, which looked really weird since it didn't really a head.

"You kids look beat. You need somewhere to rest?" Chuck asked, Hitmonchan hopping from foot to foot beside him.

Karen hopped out from behind me, a battered but otherwise unharmed Pidgey fluttering on her shoulder. "Yeah, that'd be great!" she chirped.

I scowled, sharing a look with Charmeleon, who huffed out a tuft of smoke. Karen turned to me and after a moment I shrugged. "Fine."

* * *

"So you were saying that those Arbok have been attacking people?"

An hour later we sat around a small table, drinking water and eating some fruit, at the black belts' small camp. The river ran through nearby, and a towering cliff, probably an extension of the Moon mountain range, served as one edge of the clearing where the camp was set up.

Chuck nodded, turning to me. "About three weeks ago, a traveler was almost killed by them. His Persian died protecting him."

Karen was giving a piece of a sitrus to Pidgey, perched on her shoulder, and stopped, putting a hand over her mouth. "Oh, poor guy."

"And his Marowak was critically injured," Bruce put in. "We were able to save it, though, and he made it to Cerulean with his remaining three Pokemon. Last I heard, he settled down there and hasn't traveled about since."

"And you're trying to kill those Arbok," I said, spearing a slice of apple with my fork.

"If we have to," Bruce answered grimly.

"We'd rather try to catch them, see if we can figure out why they're attacking, if possible," Chuck said.

Karen looked down, Pidgey eyeing the piece of oran in her fingers. I scowled at my bowl, slowly pushing around the fruit. Finally, I looked up.

"Why would they attack people?"

Chuck and Bruce shared a glance.

"We don't know," Chuck said with a shrug.

"Could be they're rabid and have lost any inhibitions of attacking anyone or anything," Bruce suggested. "You see, Pokemon like Arbok hardly ever go after anything bigger than them when hunting. They usually eat Rattata or Pidgey, that kind of thing. You're lucky we got there in time, or your Pidgey would be in that Arbok's digestive tract right now."

Karen's eyes widened and she looked at Pidgey, handing her another piece of fruit.

"But sometimes," Bruce continued, "Arbok can become hungry enough that they attack humans. If they do that, than they find out we're not a whole harder to kill than your average Pidgey."

"Or it could be that they had a Trainer who made them do some pretty nasty things, and they keep doing it even after they were released," Chuck added. "Although we're leaning more toward the former."

I raised my eyebrows before scowling again. _Team Rocket... _I glanced over at Karen. She had a hard look in her eyes. Seemed she thought the same thing.

"I'll help."

Karen, Chuck, and Bruce turned to me with wide eyes.

"Out of the question," Chuck said.

"Too dangerous," Bruce agreed.

"Yeah, Jack," Karen put in, "that shiny Arbok would have gotten you if Bruce's Hitmonlee hadn't been there."

"I know, but..." I trailed off, poking at a grape. I looked her in the eye. "But what if it was Team Rocket?"

Karen opened her mouth to say something, but then closed it again, quirking it in a frown.

"If it is them, we can't let them keep doing crap like this," I insisted.

"Jack, I don't think we should be getting involved with them."

My mouth fell open. "What the hell do you mean, shouldn't get involved with them? They've done nothing but harass us since the day after we set out from Pallet. They killed Olivia's Butterfree, would have killed Mitchell, no doubt about it, they kidnapped Gary and kept him for an entire week, and they _killed Rattata. _How are we _not going to involved_?!"

"I don't mean to interrupt," Chuck said, "but you're talking about the criminal organization, right?"

I whirled on him, about to snap, "Have you heard of any other Team Rocket?" but bit down on my tongue at the last second. "Yes," I said instead, glancing at Karen. She gazed at her bowl, biting her lip, rubbing her finger in Pidgey's chest as the little bird cooed.

Chuck looked at Bruce, who was looking away, thinking. Finally, he looked up.

"Can you defend yourself?" he asked me.

"Of course."

"Even without your Pokemon?"

"I've taken some classes in self-defense."

Bruce frowned and Chuck shook his head. "Don't think that'll be good enough," he said.

"Why the hell not?"

"A couple of classes won't help you much when you're neck-deep in trouble."

"We've come across Team Rocket before, and we came out just fine," I said.

"Even so, it's too dangerous," Chuck insisted. "Stay out of it, and keep heading for Cerulean."

I shook my head, surprising myself at how stubborn I was being. "Can't do that. Especially if it is Team Rocket's fault these Arbok are attacking people."

"I understand, Jack," Chuck said, "I myself have lost a Pokemon as well to those Arbok, a Machoke. I can see why you'd want to do this, since Team Rocket killed your Rattata and assaulted you. But I've dealt with them before. They're a very dangerous group. Some members more than others. I think you should just consider yourself lucky that you survived any encounter with them." He looked at Bruce, who nodded in agreement. "But leave the Arbok to us."

"If you want, we could escort you closer to a small town on the way to Cerulean, and you can go from there," Bruce offered.

"That sounds-" Karen began before I slapped my hand on the table, causing the dishes to jump. Charmeleon, Bulbasaur, and our Pikachu looked up from their bowls of the Pokemon food that the black belts claimed they made themselves. Magikarp was swimming around in the river behind us, every now and then jumping out to catch a small wayward flying insect.

"No, dammit, we are not going on," I said. "I'm helping."

"Jack, please," Karen said, taking hold of my arm, "let's just take him up on his offer and keep going."

"Karen, come on, do you really want to let Team Rocket do whatever the hell they want and end up killing people?"

Karen opened her mouth to speak, but then closed it again, pressing her lips into a thin line.

"I'll help you," I said to the black belts.

"No, Jack," Chuck responded. "You're far too inexperienced, we can't in good conscience let you-"

"Then teach me."

Chuck stopped, and after a moment shared a look with Bruce.

"I don't know," he said.

"Please. I can help."

Chuck turned to Bruce and asked him what he thought. Bruce looked at me intently, and I stared back.

"I guess it wouldn't be too bad to give him a few pointers."

"_What?_"

"Think about it, Chuck. He might know how to defend himself, but you yourself said that wouldn't be enough. Look, there are people out there that are a whole lot tougher than us. I know for a fact that there's someone like that in Team Rocket, someone who could kill three men like you and me in just seconds. Now that Jack's gotten their attention, they might even send this guy after him. Then his skills wouldn't be enough, and he'll kill him."

My mouth fell open at that. Someone who could take out three black belts so easily? In Team Rocket? Maybe I really _was_ getting in over my head...

_Doesn't matter! _An inner voice shouted at me. _They've killed Rattata, Olivia's Butterfree and almost killed us! For all I know they're killing other people and Pokemon! I have to do something about them. If not for Rattata, then for Olivia..._

"Well, I guess you have a point..." Chuck admitted.

Bruce waited.

"Is there really someone like that in Team Rocket?" Karen asked, a tremor making its way into her voice.

"There is," Bruce answered, still waiting on Chuck's response.

Finally, Chuck sighed. "Fine. At least to keep yourself safe, Jack."

I let out a breath. "Thanks."

"We start tomorrow morning."

* * *

I looked down at myself, stifling a yawn.

"Are you serious?" I asked Chuck, who stood looking me over, hand on his chin.

"It does seem a little big on you..."

I lifted my arms, the sleeves of the white tunic, much like Chuck's own, dangling at least a foot from my hands. "'A little'? This thing is freakin' huge!"

"I remember it fitting me very well when I was your age."

"Well, then you must have been huge back then, too."

"You're pretty tall for your age."

"Well, yeah, but you must be half-Machoke to have been this big."

Chuck guffawed at that and slapped my back, sending me stumbling forward, my legs getting tangled in the obscenely long pants, and falling flat on my face. I groaned, struggling to sit up, as Chuck bellowed, "That's quite the sense of humor you got there, Jack!"

I was finally able to stand, saying, "Not everyday someone says _that_." I lifted my arms again, the sleeves swinging to and fro. "Is there anything we can do about this?"

Chuck frowned, studying the tunic, before looking around the cabin him and Bruce lived in. His eyes settled on something on a dresser and nodded. He went over to retrieve it and came back, holding it up, and I leaned back a bit. It was a six-inch-long hunting knife.

"Damn. That thing's huge."

Chuck grinned toothily. "This baby'll fix this. Like I always say, when in doubt, start cutting shit up!"

"You never say that," Bruce's voice came drifting in from the small living room.

"Shut the hell up, _Brucie_!" Chuck shouted.

"Dammit, don't call me that, you asshole!"

"That's what I used to call him when we were kids," Chuck snickered. "He just _hates _it when I call him that now. Alright," he said, calming down, "take off the tunic."

I did so, handing it to him. He slung the pants over his shoulder, turned the shirt around, frowning. He then shrugged, placed the knife on a nightstand, took hold of a sleeve and pulled. Chuck struggled for a couple of seconds, then, with a loud tearing sound, ripped sleeve of the shirt right off. The tossed it away and it fluttered to the floor as he worked on the other one.

"You guys seem pretty close," I commented.

Chuck ripped the other sleeve off as he answered, "We should be. He's my brother."

My eyebrows shot up. "He is?"

Chuck laughed. "Hard to believe, ain't it?" He crouched down next to me, measuring the pants alongside my leg. He studied it for a moment before using the knife to knick the pants leg where he would cut it. He stood, beginning to saw at it. "We don't look much alike, do we?"

They really didn't. They were both really buff, but Bruce was leaner, and he was a few skin tones darker. Bruce's eyes were sharply angled, and he had a thin face, whereas Chuck was... rounder. He even had a bit of a gut.

"We're actually half-brothers," Chuck explained as he cut at the other pants leg. "His dad married my mom when I was three, and he was born a year later."

"Never would have thought," I muttered.

Chuck shrugged. "No one ever does. Alright, that should do it." He handed me the entire uniform and I put it on. My arms were exposed all the way up my shoulder, and the pants ended in ragged edges just above my ankles.

"Might have cut the pants a little short, but it's good enough."

"The pants are a little wide," I said, pulling up my pants every few seconds.

"Right..." He went to his closet and dug around in it. "What level did you say you reached?"

"Blue."

"Blue, eh? That's pretty good." He came back out, holding a length of cloth in his hand. "Here's my old one. Try it on."

I took it and tied it around my waist. It was a little longer than I was used to, but it was a good fit.

"Great. Let's get started."

We went into the living room where Bruce sat on the couch, reading a magazine. I caught a glimpse of a woman in an odd position before he spotted us and frantically stuffed it between the couch cushions.

"Dude, you got into my stash?"

"I have needs too, you know," Bruce shot back.

"I don't think Jack should be hearing about that," Chuck said, leading me away.

"What needs is he talking about?" I asked, curious.

Chuck's mouth twitched. "Ask your dad."

"He's in another region."

"Then you'll find out when you're older."

We stepped outside and Karen glanced up from the table where she was eating breakfast with her Pokemon.

"Well, well, look at you, Karate Kid," she said, grinning.

"Shut up."

"Seriously, looks good on you!"

"Your girlfriend's right, Jack, you look like a regular karate master."

"What?!" Karen cried, her cheeks suddenly red as a tamato berry. "No, no, it's not like that all!"

I stared at Chuck, shaking my head a few times, cursing the heat that rushed to my face. "We're just friends."

"Yeah, just friends!"

"Bah, I'm just joking with you," Chuck laughed. "Come on, Jack."

I turned to give Karen a smile, but she was staring at her fruit, cheeks still tinted pink. I frowned and followed Chuck to a cleared out grassy area beside the cabin.

"Alright, Jack, let's see what you got."

"What, right now?"

"Right now."

I frowned. "Um, okay. If you're sure."

He lowered his stance, spreading his legs and raising his hands, and I did the same. I paused, watching Chuck. What the hell was I supposed to do? I've never so much as sparred with a black belt before, and I didn't what would happen now. What if he manages to hurt me badly? Break a bone? Or worse?"

"Jack, come on."

I blinked, and nodded. _Just make the first move, and see where it goes from there. _Easier said than done. I closed my eyes, feeling Karen watching, took a breath, and dashed forward. Once I was close enough my fist lashed out toward Chuck's ribs.

Lightning fast, his arm came up, deflected the blow, and hit me with the palm of his hand in my chest. I staggered back, a hand clutching the spot, before swallowing and running forward again. I leaped, my right leg arcing around, but Chuck blocked it and took hold of it. In a desperate move I twisted, bringing my other leg around to strike my heel at the back of his head. Chuck in turn twisted, grabbing my leg in an iron grip. I winced at how tight he clamped on, but wasn't able to do anything when he spun and tossed me away.

I landed on the grass on my back and Chuck bellowed in laughter.

"That was great, Jack! You actually almost got me there!"

I jumped back up and charged him again. I whirled, my leg spinning around, aiming to slam my heel into his side. Without a moment's hesitation Chuck stuck out his hand and my heel slapped into his palm. My eyes widened as he grinned and, with hardly any effort, lifted me up into the air with that one hand holding onto my foot and slammed me right back down onto the grass. The air rushed out of my lungs, I cried out and Karen shouted my name in concern.

"It's fine," Chuck called to her as I struggled to refill my lungs. "Didn't cause any lasting damage! I hope," he muttered under his breath.

"You _hope_?"

"Don't be a wuss. Up and at 'em, boy!"

I grudgingly got back to my feet and faced him once more. I tensed my legs muscles to charge at him again before he raised his hand.

"Before you come at me again, Jack, I have to tell you that you're talented at hand-to-hand." I raised my eyebrows at the compliment. "That said, you could definitely use some improvement.

"I hope you're ready for the next few days, Jack, cause I _will_ make you better. Now try again."

I gulped, took a breath, and charged.

* * *

"These things are freakin' heavy!"

"That's the point, Jack," Chuck sighed.

"But I can barely lift my arms!" To emphasize my point, I tried raising my hand, but the five pound weights around each wrist made it damn near impossible. I had others wrapped around my ankles, and another around my waist, beneath my shirt.

"If you can like you normally can with those things on, then just imagine how fast you'll be without 'em!"

My eyebrows shot up as I remembered back to a month ago, when I was training my Pokemon for our second rematch against Brock. I remembered tying weights around Charmeleon before he evolved, Pikachu, and...

I looked down, a pang of sadness twanging in my chest. Chuck must have noticed my crestfallen look because he asked, "What's wrong?"

"I... was just remembering training my Pokemon with weights. One of them, my Rattata, was killed by some Team Rocket goons two weeks ago."

Chuck was silent for a moment. He placed a hand on my shoulder, smiling morosely. "I'm sorry about that, Jack. I've lost Pokemon, too, when I was your age. It was a Poliwag. I adored the little guy. But then some asshole Trainer got too rough in a battle and ended up killing him."

I raised my eyebrows. "Really?"

Chuck only nodded.

"Who was it?"

"No idea. He never told me his name. All I knew was that he liked Ground-types. He had a young Rhyhorn with him, and I should have been able to beat him with Poliwag, but he was immensely strong, even back then. Can't imagine how powerful he is now."

We were silent for a moment before I said, "I'm sorry about your Poliwag."

"Thanks, kid," he said grinning. "But enough reminiscing. Come on."

* * *

By the end of the day, even with the weights on, I was able to move as freely as I could without them. But by then, I was exhausted, my muscles hardly responding.

"Alright, just once more, and we'll call it a day," Chuck announced, in his fighting stance.

I sighed long and deep before rolling my neck and charging. Chuck watched me, and raised his arm to block as my right leg came around to strike. My left arm then went up over my head and came down, aiming to hit his shoulder. He smacked it away and I used the momentum to swing myself around, bringing my leg up and lashing out. To my great surprise, I managed to slap my heel into his bicep, and Chuck took a step to the side.

"Wow, you actually got me," he said, rubbing the spot. "And it hurt, too! You're definitely getting better."

I grinned as he slapped me in the back.

"That's enough for today. We'll do some more tomorrow."

Karen suddenly came running up, beaming. "That was awesome, Jack! You're like a karate master now!"

"Well, I wouldn't say _that_..." I murmured, still grinning.

"But you're all sweaty now. Ew."

"I have been training all day."

"You guys got a shower?" she asked Chuck.

"Yep."

"Mind if he uses it?"

"Not at all."

"Alrighty, Jackie, go take a shower," Karen demanded, moving around behind me and pushing at my back.

"Great, now you're calling me Jackie, too."

"'Cause Mitchell's right, it's more fun saying it."

"Jack is plenty fun."

"Of course you would think that. You need to lighten up!" With that, she gripped my belt and tugged, and my pants immediately fell. Karen descended into a giggle fit as I yanked my pants back up, snatching the belt away from her.

"That's not funny!" I shouted, heat flaring up in my cheeks.

"It totally is."

"You're so immature," I growled, heading off to shower, leaving Karen to roll around on the floor giggling her head off.

* * *

"Alright, now that you've gotten used to the weights, take 'em off."

I did so, letting them fall to the grass at my feet. I rubbed my wrists, wincing as my muscles protested at my movements.

"How do you feel?"

"You mean besides the fact that I'm so sore I can barely lift my hand? Pretty good."

"No pain, no gain, right?"

"I guess," I sighed.

"Alright, now let's see how well you do this time."

I groaned, but readied my stance. At Chuck's signal I charged. It seemed that training yesterday really helped. I felt lighter, faster now. That was probably why, when Chuck blocked my initial punch, my other fist snapped up and into his gut. Some air whooshed out of him and he stumbled back, laughing.

"Wow, I haven't felt a punch that hard in while now. And to come from you! You might just be a mini-me at that!"

For the next two hours, until noon, we sparred, and I got in way more hits on him than I ever did yesterday. By then Chuck was panting, and I was barely able to stand. He studied me with narrowed eye before grinning widely.

"Alright, I think that's enough training, Jack."

"What? Why? I could still improve much more!"

"I know that, and you will. But all I promised to do was help you improve just enough to survive. If you want to reach my level, then you'll have to keep training on your own. For now, though, you should rest. I can tell it's taking all you have to stand."

My legs gave out then, and I collapsed on the grass. I heard footsteps running over and Karen was kneeling next to me.

"You okay, Jack?"

"I'm fine," I managed to get out.

She smiled. "I'm jealous, Jack. You're definitely a karate master now!"

"Yeah, sure," I whispered, exhausted.

"Alright, come on, you gotta rest up so we can get going tomorrow!"

I nodded and let her help me up and to the cabin, and to the guest room we shared. I plopped down onto my sleeping bag, which I had set up on the floor while Karen took the bed. Karen lay down on the bed, peering over the edge at me, smiling gently. I smiled back and couldn't resist as my eyes slid closed.

* * *

Karen watched as Jack quickly fell asleep, his breathes slowing to a steady rhythm. She was proud of him. He went through all that training with Chuck just so that he could protect them, protect her. Jack was always like that, ever since they first met in kindergarten. She could remember it so easily.

Gary had been picking on him for being so quiet. Even when he was five years old Jack Grant had been a very quiet boy, almost never saying anything unless spoken to. Which was why Gary and some of his friends took to calling him Mimey, and picked on him. Karen had noticed it one day and stepped between them, telling them to buzz off. She had already made a reputation for herself as a rowdy girl, and Gary and his friends ran off. Since then, Jack and Karen had become inseparable. He was always protective of her from then on, as if he were repaying a debt, going out of his to defend her from bullies, and more.

She smiled once more. There was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

"How's he-" Chuck stopped when he saw Jack passed out on the floor. "Oh. He must be more tired than I thought."

Karen giggled, gently pushing a strand of his hair from his eye. "Yeah."

* * *

"Thanks for everything."

The next morning Karen and I stood outside of the black belts' cabin.

"Ah, it was nothing," Chuck said, a bruise on his cheek.

"He really got you good, didn't he?" Bruce chuckled as his brother rubbed the bruise.

"He's got a helluva arm for his age. Anyway, you kids take care now, yeah?"

"You bet!" Karen chirped before hugging my arm. "Besides, this guy will keep me safe, right?"

I grinned. "Of course I will." Karen beamed and kissed me on the cheek.

"Aw, look at the wittle wovebirds!" Chuck cackled.

Karen cheeks flared up and she pushed me away, kicking at the ground. "We are not love birds," he said.

"I beg to-"

He stopped when the bushes nearby rustled. We turned to look at them just as a Pokemon burst through. It was small, about as tall as Pikachu, and navy blue. It his a thin tail and two legs, no arms, with a spiral pattern on its white belly.

The Poliwag ran toward us, ducking behind Chuck's legs.

"A Poliwag? Why's it so scared?"

Chuck's question was answered when two long, thick figures burst through the foliage, coming right toward us. They split up, one going for the Poliwag and the other for Karen. I shoved her away and my leg came swinging up and into the purple Arbok's gaping maw, slamming it shut and sending a thin spray of blood shooting into the air.

"Get away, Karen!" I shouted and she did so, putting distance between her and the snake. The Pokemon reared up, it's hood flaring open, and the design on it seemed to shift, seemed to contort into the face of a demon, a monster that would rip my stomach open and tear my head off if it got hold of me, I had to move, it was opening it's jaws, it's going to attack, I have to move, I have to get away, it's going to kill me, then it's going to kill Karen, I can't let that happen, I have to move, _why the hell can't I move-_

Chuck's Hitmonchan jumped between us and slammed a flaming fist into the snake's hood, knocking it to the ground.

"Jack you okay?"

"Y-yeah, f-f-fine," I stammered, shaken by what had just happened.

"It just used Glare," Chuck explained as the Arbok slithered up, fighting Hitmonchan. "It's a technique that paralyzes its enemy, allowing it to strike at it's own leisure."

I gulped, seeing just how dangerous two of them could be. I shifted my feet, feeling something beneath them, and I looked down. It's was a length of rope, about five feet long. I glanced up as the Arbok use Iron Tail to swat Hitmonchan aside and slithered at us. Without hesitation I snatched up the rope and dashed forward, ignoring Chuck's cries. The Arbok opened it's jaws wide, eyeing me hungrily, and I raised the rope. Just before it would have reached me and torn into me I leaped, twisting around as the rope ran into the snake's mouth. It clamped down right away as I landed on it's back, driving it to the ground. It hissed, trying and failing to chew at the rope. It was to far back in its mouth, and its fangs couldn't reach it. I stood, keeping a tight grip on the rope, and stomped down on its head as it writhed beneath me. Its struggles slowed before coming back faster than before.

Chuck called Hitmonchan over, and I leaned back as he reared back, muscles in his arms bunched up, and drove Mega Punch right on its head. It went limp, and thinking it was down I released the rope.

That was a mistake.

Fast as lightning, it snapped up, knocking me to the ground spewing Sludge Bomb at Hitmonchan, sending him flying away. It turned to me and I sent out Charmeleon, ordering him to use Iron Tail to block its Crunch. His steel hard tail was far too tough for the Arbok to bite through and it reeled away, hissing in pain.

I jumped on the chance, shouting, "Flamethrower!"

Charmeleon fired the pillar of flame at the snake and it screeched, slithering away, only to be met with a DynamicPunch from Hitmonchan. I wince when I heard something crack and the Arbok fell to the grass, unmoving and wreathed in flames.

I looked over at the shiny Arbok, fighting Bruce's Hitmonlee and Karen's Pikachu. Hitmonlee slammed Blaze Kick into the Arbok's hood, sending it careening away, and Pikachu dashed forward, hitting it with Iron Tail. It fell, twisting slowly, and Bruce took the chance to take a Pokeball from his pocket and toss it at the Arbok. The snake was sucked inside and the ball plopped onto grass, shaking for only a few seconds before stopping.

"Well, then," Chuck said, "that's that. Maybe now travelers will be safe. Thanks a lot, Jack."

I pushed myself to my feet, supported by Charmeleon. "Think they're really from Team Rocket?"

Chuck frowned. He approached the dead Arbok, kicking some dirt over it to put out the flames. He crouched down next to the body, looking it over. He blinked and leaned in closer. "Take a look at this."

I moved closer as he flipped the Arbok onto its stomach. He pointed at a small symbol, about as big as my thumb, in the skin on the back of the hood. Looking closer, I realized it was an R.

"Team Rocket," I growled.

Chuck nodded solemnly, Karen and Bruce looking at it over our shoulders. "Seems they've taken to branding some of their Pokemon."

Karen gasped. "That's horrible! Why would they do that?"

Chuck only shrugged. "No idea, but at least we know why they were so aggressive."

The Poliwag from earlier came over, timidly approaching the Arbok. The little Water-type sniffed at the body, making sure it wouldn't move, before spurting a bit of water on it and waddling away. This time the Poliwag approached Chuck, nuzzling his hand.

"Hey there, little buddy," he said softly, picking the Pokemon up. "You okay?"

The Poliwag nodded and Chuck smiled, his eyes shimmering. "That's good." I remembered that Chuck told me he used to have a Poliwag that was killed when he was young.

"Thanks again," Bruce said as the Poliwag hopped onto Chuck's shoulder.

"Just glad we could help," Karen chirped.

"We should get going," I said. "Maybe we'll see you again some time."

Chuck reached his hand out and I shook it, just barely holding back a yelp when he damn near crushed my hand.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Review, please?


	16. A Misty Meeting

Chapter 16-A Misty Meeting

It had been eight days since our encounter with Chuck and Bruce. Karen and I walked along the road, and she was trying to convince me that Batman could beat Iron Man any day.

"Think about it: Batman's got all those cool gadgets. Don't you think he'd have one that could mess with the armor?"

"Maybe, but wouldn't Iron Man find some way to gadget-proof his armor? Besides, he could just crush him with his super strength."

"But Batman's a ninja. A freakin' ninja! There's no way Iron Man could find him, let alone catch him!"

"Yeah, but Iron Man's probably got some sort of way to see in the dark, with thermal vision or something. He'd spot Batman right away."

"So Batman would thermal-vison-proof his suit!"

"Iron Man would just find another way to find him."

"But Batman'd use some super awesome gadget to keep Iron Man away!"

"We just came in a big circle here."

"Pfft, you just don't want to admit that Batman would beat Iron Man to a pulp."

"Let's just agree to disagree, alright?" I sighed.

Karen was quiet for a few minutes.

"I win."

"Shut up."

"When someone says to agree to disagree, that means they lost they argument, so I- hey, look, there's someone there."

She pointed down the grassy slope toward the bank of the river. Sure enough, there sat a girl, with a head of red hair, and a fishing pole in her hands, line in the water. Before I could stop her Karen was already trotting down the slope. With a sigh I followed her.

"Hi!" Karen called out, and the girl turned. Her hair was fashioned in a short side ponytail thing and she had dewdrop shaped earrings, and she seemed just a little older than us.

"Oh, hi," she greeted.

"What are you doing?" Karen asked, hands behind her back, as I stopped next to her.

"Nothing much, just fishing." The girl looked us over, biting her lip. "You must be Trainers, right?"

"That's right!" Karen chirped and I nodded.

"Where you headed?"

"To Cerulean City," I answered, and she turned to me, surprised, as if just noticing I was there. She grinned and jumped up, pulling her fishing line out of the water. She wore a yellow sleeveless tank top, with just a bit of her midriff showing, denim shorts and red and white sneakers.

"You know, as it just so happens, I'm from Cerulean City. If you want, I could you there."

"It's fine," I said, hands in my pockets. "We'll just take the road." I nodded my head up the slope and the girl just waved her hand.

"Going that way'll just take you longer, almost five hours. I know a shortcut that could get us there in half that time. C'mon, you can trust me!"

I shared a look with Karen. I was hesitant to trust this girl we just met so easily, but Karen seemed to, if her bright smile was any indication. I frowned, but nodded. The girl beamed.

"Okay, then, follow me! Oh, by the way, the name's Misty."

"Jack."

"I'm Karen!"

"Nice to meet you guys. Alright, let's go!"

True to her words, two hours later we emerged from the wilderness into a narrow dirt path that led down the hill and into the outskirts of Cerulean City.

"Wow, it's so pretty up here!" Karen said.

"Yup, definitely is," Misty agreed. "What do you think, Jack?"

"It's nice," I said, gazing at the glittering ocean in the distance.

"Come on, I'll take you guys to the Pokemon Center."

"Oh, you don't need to do that," Karen said.

"No, no, it's okay, really! 'Least I could do is take you guys there instead of leaving you to get lost trying to look for it."

"Lead the way, then," I said.

Misty led us through the street of Cerulean, and along the way countless people greeted her, asking how she was doing, how her sisters are, how talented she was

"You seem popular," I remarked after an old woman walked off after saying how much she had grown.

Misty shrugged. "What can I say? I'm just cool like that."

Thirty minutes later we stopped in front of the familiar red-domes roof.

"Well, here we are!" Misty announced, hands on her hips. "So you guys gonna challenge the Gym Leader here?"

I nodded.

"Cool. Y'know, if you want, I could take you guys to the Gym. If you want," she finished sheepishly, smiling at me.

"Yeah, that'd be great," I said. "Don't want to get lost, right?"

"Right! You guys should book a room here and rest up. Why don't we meet up here in two hours and I'll take you then?"

"Sure thing!" Karen agreed.

"See ya later."

With a final wave Misty sauntered off and Karen and I stepped into the Center. We stopped right away, watching the pink-haired woman speaking with a girl, teal hair pulled back into a high ponytail, at the counter.

"You're seeing this, right?" Karen asked.

"The Nurse Joy doppelganger? Yep."

"I don't get it. She looks _exactly _like the nurse from Pewter."

"And she looked like the one from Viridian."

"The one in Viridian has twin sisters working at the Pewter Pokemon Center and the one at Mt. Moon, right?"

"That's what she told me once."

"So who's this?"

"A fourth sister?"

"Wouldn't the others have told us about it?"

"I don't know. Maybe she's not very nice and the others don't like her."

"I... guess that makes sense."

The girl at the counter handed a card, probably her Trainer's license, to the nurse. She took it, swiped it through a computer, then gave it back. The girl took it and walked off into a hallway, presumably to her room.

"Hang on, didn't that girl have a Pokedex?"

"What?"

"Remember in Viridian City, Jack? When Nurse Joy asked for our Pokedexes? Why didn't this girl give her one?"

I frowned. I hadn't noticed that, but now that Karen mentioned it... I had never seen anyone else beside me, Karen, and Gary have a Pokedex.

Were we the only ones in the entire region that had Pokedexes?

"Can I help you kids?" Nurse Joy asked when she spotted us just standing there.

Karen jumped. "Uh, y-yeah, we'd like a room."

"Excuse me, but were talking about Pokedexes just now?"

"Yes," I answered, my hands sliding into my pockets.

"Do you have any?" she asked timidly.

We took out our Pokedexes and handed them to her, and Nurse Joy went through the process of giving us a room. When she was done she gave them back, and I frowned at them as Karen asked, "Excuse me, did that girl just now have a Pokedex?"

The nurse blinked and frowned daintily. I noticed that she seemed younger than the other nurses at the other Centers. "No, she didn't. As far as I know, you two are the only ones that have one."

Karen looked at me. "Think we should ask the Professor about it?"

"Come on, let's call him." We left our Pokemon with the nurse and went over to the phones. I sat at the bench, Karen sliding in next to me. I dialed in the Professor's number, it rang several times, and his weathered face appeared on the screen.

"Ah, Jack! And Karen!"

"Hi, Professor," Karen and I said at once.

"So you kids are in Cerulean City now, I take it?"

"Yep!" Karen answered.

"So I take it you're going to challenge the Gym?"

"We will, but there's something we have to talk about first, Professor," I said.

He noted the seriousness in my voice and frowned. "What is it?"

I shared a glance with Karen, afraid we were about to face the scolding of a lifetime. I turned back to the Professor, saying, "Something's wrong with our Pokedexes."

"Oh? What's the matter with them."

"You see, a little more than a week ago, we fell in a river with them. We tried using them on a Pokemon, a Spearow, but they instead kept telling us it was a Rhydon, or a Kanghaskan, or a Fearow, when it was clearly a Spearow."

"Yeah. We figure that the water messed with them."

"The Pokemon recognition software is on the fritz."

We fell silent as Professor Oak thought it over. Finally, he looked up at us. "Well, that certainly is a problem."

We blinked.

"You're not mad?" I asked.

"We just messed up the Pokedexes," Karen added.

"No, no, it's fine. I expected some malfunctions at one point or another. Which is why I have a contingency plan for this."

"Which is?"

"North of Cerulean City is what is commonly referred to at the Cerulean Cape. There lives a brilliant programmer who actually helped me develop the Pokedex. You kids are too far for me to get there in any short order right now, so he's your best bet. His name's Bill."

Karen let out a breath. "Thanks, Professor. We'll head there right away."

"One more thing," I cut in as he reached up to end the call.

"Hm?"

"Professor, are we the only ones in the entire region that have a Pokedex?"

He nodded. "You, Karen, and Gary are the only ones that I have entrusted a Pokedex to."

"Why?"

"The Pokedex is an experimental device that I've worked on for years. It took me over a decade to compile the information of all Pokemon in Kanto, and another to develop the device. It took such a long time, not to mention they were expensive, so I was only able to make those three."

"If these are the only ones in existence right now, how are we able to use them to as a license in Pokemon Centers?"

"That's because I've spoken to the Pokemon League about it. They agreed to install machines that will recognize a Pokedex in the stead of an ID in exchange for them funding me to make some more."

Suddenly there was a crash and the sound of glass breaking from the Professor's end.

"What the- No, get away from that!"

Something else broke, and the Professor said, "Sorry, I gotta go. Some of the Pokemon are getting rowdy." With that, the call ended.

* * *

"Kinda makes me feel special, know what I mean?"

"No, not really."

"Really? Well, I feel special."

"Yes, Karen, you are very special," I deadpanned.

"Hey, are you calling me dumb?!"

"No, I'm calling you special."

Karen pouted. "Sometimes you can be so mean."

"So you wanna go see Bill first, or challenge the Gym?"

"Hm... it'll probably take a while to get to Bill's house out on the cape, and the Gym's right here."

"Gym it is then."

"Besides, it's not like we'll need to use a Pokedex during the Gym battle, right?"

I nodded. "So who's gonna battle the Gym Leader first?"

"Well, I went up against Brock first, so I guess you should."

"Then I'll battle him-"

"Hey, guys!"

We turned to Misty as she trotted up to us. "Ready to go?"

"Let's go!" Karen said excitedly.

We followed Misty as she led us through the city, passing by the shopping district, which was jam-packed with people, all of the storefronts already covered in Halloween decorations.

"Oh, that's right, Halloween's next month!" Karen exclaimed.

"Kinda early for them to be setting up the decorations, though," I said.

Misty, the biggest grin plastered on her face and a skip in her step, said, "People around here like to get things like this set up early."

I briefly wondered why she was smiling like that, but gave it no more thought as we passed by a couple holding hands and sharing a large chocolate sundae.

"Misty."

"Hm?"

"What can you tell us about Cerulean Cape?"

Misty raised her eyebrows before smirking. "It's a very famous spot around here. People, like those two we just passed, go there for their dates. It's supposed to be very romantic. Why do you ask?" She turned to Karen. "Is he your boyfriend and you want to go on a romantic date?"

Karen flushed deep red, and I felt a little flustered, too.

"No, it's not like that!" she cried.

"Not at all," I said calmly.

"Then how come you guys are blushing, huh?" Misty leaned in really close, watching us.

Karen looked away and I pushed Misty back.

"We need to see Bill about fixing our Pokedexes."

"You guys have Pokedexes? Cool! Can I see them?"

"Sure," Karen said meekly, cheeks still red. She showed her Pokedex to Misty, who took it and studied it.

"This thing's so cool! Where'd you get it? I heard that only Professor Oak had any!"

"He gave them to us," I said.

"Eh?"

"Professor Oak gave us the Pokedexes."

Misty stared for a long time, and I shared a look with Karen.

Finally, Misty cried, "That is so cool! Do you _know_ the Professor?! He's, like, super famous! Oh, damn, my sisters are rubbing off on me..."

"Yeah, he was like a father to me."

"So you guys are from Pallet Town!"

I nodded as she gave Karen her Pokedex back.

"So why are you headed for the Cape?"

"Our Pokedexes are malfunctioning," I answered, "and Professor Oak said that someone named Bill could fix them."

"Oh, Bill. I've heard of him. Lives alone on the Cape, doing God knows what. But if he can fix them, then he must be pretty smart."

"That's what the Professor said."

Twenty minutes later, we stopped.

"Well, here we are!" Misty announced, beaming.

We stood in front of a large building. It looked a lot like the Pewter Gym, except it had a light blue paint job, and there were the designs of Goldeen and Seaking painted above the glass doors.

"Jeez, that is to tacky. I keep telling to take it off, but no, it's 'too cute'..."

"What?" I asked Misty.

She blinked and shook her head. "Oh, it's nothing. Let's go inside."

Misty led us through the doors and down a beige hallway with squeaky clean floors. There was a doorway at the end of the hall, and other doors dotted the sides. We went through the doorway ahead of of us and stopped.

The largest pool I had ever seen took up most of the interior of the building, and there floated some rafts in the water.

"I'm gonna guess that this is a Water-type Gym," I said.

"That's right," Misty affirmed with a wink.

"Wait, Misty, are you a Gym Trainer here?"

The redhead smirked. "Not exactly."

"So how come you were able to just walk in here if you don't work here?"

Misty's smirk grew even wider and she pivoted. She walked along the length of the pool with long, confident strides, hands on her hips. At the other end of the pool she stopped with a final, purposeful stomp of her foot.

Her next words rang throughout the Gym, shocking us worse than a Raichu's Thunderbolt.

"That's because I'm the Gym Leader!"

* * *

**Author's Note: **This is easily my shortest chapter yet, and probably will be the shortest of this entire story, but I hope you like it nevertheless. So, yeah, reviews. I liek reevyoos.


	17. Despair of the Rain

Chapter 17-Despair of the Rain

"That's because I'm the Gym Leader!"

Silence. The only sounds were the gentle lapping of the pool water against the side of the pool.

Misty stood at the end of the pool, beaming, hands on her hips, legs spread in a confident pose.

"No way," I muttered.

"Is... is she being serious?"

"I... can't tell."

"Of course I'm serious!" Misty exclaimed. "I'm the Gym Leader!"

We stared at Misty, who was smiling confidently, her earrings glinting in the light. "Well? Are we going to battle or not? Come on, guys, I'm not lying! I really am the Gym Leader."

I glanced at Karen. She shrugged and I sighed. I stepped forward, taking a Pokeball from my belt, and stood at the end of the pool opposite from Misty.

"You're really the Gym Leader."

"I already said I am! Now let's get this started! Seel!"

She tossed out a Pokeball and it snapped open, a white Pokemon plopping into the water. It broke through the surface of the water, and I could make out a light beige snout with two small canines sticking out. On its head was a tiny horn.

"So this pool will be the battlefield?"

"Yeah, now send out your Pokemon!"

So that must be what the rafts are for, so any non-Water-type could battle. I frowned, thinking that I did have a Water-type, but I wasn't sure how Magikarp would fare in a battle, and Charmeleon would be at a disadvantage. I would probably have to rely solely on Pikachu.

I sent out my little Electric Mouse and he shook his head, ears flopping, before standing at attention on a six-foot-by-six-foot yellow raft.

"Your move, Jack."

I studied the arena. Seel, being a Water-type, would be able to move around much more easily than Pikachu ever could, so limiting its mobility would give me and advantage.

"Pikachu, Thunder Wave!"

"Dive!"

Pikachu fired a weak shock from his cheeks toward the Water Pokemon, but it missed when it dove under the water.

"Dammit. Where's it gonna come from?"

I scanned the surface of the water, hoping to catch a glimpse of the seal, but I could see nothing. This pool must be really deep if I could far down enough to disappear from-

There!

"Pikachu, Iron Tail to the left!"

Pikachu readied the attack and pivoted as Seel leapt out of the water. The Pokemon was in mid-air, and unable to block or evade, and Pikachu's attack slammed into its side. The seal was sent careening to the side, falling back into the water. Pikachu fell down onto all fours, ready to attack again.

Only three seconds passed before Seel jumped out of the water at Misty's command of "Ice Beam!"

A ball of freezing energy formed in the Pokemon's mouth and I commanded Pikachu to dodge. He split into three other Pikachu, all of them jumping to another raft as Seel let loose. Three separate jagged beams of icy energy twined around each other as they zoomed to the spot Pikachu had been just a second eariler.

The Ice Beam hit the yellow raft, leaving a chunk of it encased in ice, before Seel fell back into the water.

"Enough!" a voice suddenly boomed, causing me to jump.

A girl of about nineteen, maybe older, with hair more fiery red than Misty's that she kept in a ponytail that came down to her back, wearing a red jacket over a white tank top, denim shorts, and sandals strode from a room in the back, and Misty yelped.

"Ah, Kasumi, sis, what are you doing here!"

"I was doing paperwork," the older girl said, glaring at Misty, arms crossed. "What I want to know is what the hell you're doing, battling this young man."

"I'm the Gym Leader now, so I should be able to accept challenges from other Trainers!" Misty explained indignantly.

The other girl closed her eyes and growled, "Dammit, Misty, do I really have to keep telling you? You're not the Gym Leader-"

"So you were lying!" Karen shouted, and Misty cringed.

"Was not!"

"Then how come she's saying you're not?"

"Because she isn't," the older girl said. "At least, not yet."

Karen's aggressiveness faded. "So she is Gym Leader."

"Not yet. We've yet to finalize the paperwork, so she's not officially the Gym Leader yet." The girl turned to Misty. "And she knows that."

"So this battle is pointless," I put in.

"Essentially, yes," the girl sighed. She began to walk around the pool as Misty dejectedly recalled Seel and I recalled Pikachu. "I'm sorry that my sister wasted your time," the older girl said when she reached us. "I'm Kasumi."

"Jack."

"I'm Karen."

"And it's no problem. So are you the Gym Leader?"

"I was. But I decided to give up the position, and my sister here"-Misty strode up to us, smiling wide- "passed the Gym Leader Admittance Test. Right now, we're between Leaders, but when it's all said and done, Misty'll be the youngest Gym Leader in all of Kanto history."

"Damn straight!" Misty said, beaming. Kasumi gave her a look and she shrank away.

"Wow, that's so cool!" Karen said.

"How old are you?" I asked Misty.

"Thirteen," was her response.

"Anyway, I'm truly sorry about all this," Kasumi apologized.

"So when can we have a Gym battle?" I asked.

Kasumi pursed her lips and crossed her arms. "I should be done with all the paperwork in several hours... ugh, what a drag... tomorrow should be good."

"We'll come back tomorrow then. Come on, Karen, might as well head for Bill's."

"Bill? You're going to see him?"

"You know him?"

"I damn well should, I'm his girlfriend."

"Ugh, you should see her when she comes back from the Cape," Misty put in before hitching her voice into a high-pitched sound, which was apparently supposed to an imitation of her sister's voice. "'Oh, Bill is so dreamy, he is so smart and so handsome and so manly and he is _soooo_ good in-'"

Kasumi clamped her hand over Misty's mouth, and slight blush tinting her cheeks. "Shut the hell up!"

Misty shoved her away and turned to us. "I'll be waiting tomorrow, 'kay? Make sure to come over here first thing!"

"You betcha!" Karen chirped.

We turned to leave as Kasumi began to chew Misty out for fooling challengers, to which Misty countered that she would have noticed them come in sooner if she hadn't been fantasizing about 'shagging' Bill, whatever that meant, to which Kasumi responded by smacking her in the head.

* * *

"So _that's_ why it's called Nugget Bridge."

"What are you talking about?"

"You don't see it, Jack? The bridge is gold-colored, and then there are those gold nuggets that are worth almost ten thousand poké each! That must mean this bridge is made of those nuggets, which means it's super expensive, so they named it the Nugget Bridge!"

I stared at her, then closed my eyes and sighed. "That's really stretching it."

"Do you have any other ideas why they named it the _Nugget _Bridge?"

I scowled, thinking. I shrugged. "Maybe some guy who enjoyed giving out nuggets of wisdom named it."

"That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard."

"Shut up. Let's just go."

"Hey, look, it's Gary!"

Sure enough, coming across the bridge, was the familiar spiky-haired, purple-pants-wearing jackass Gary Oak. He spotted us and grinned.

"Well, well, if it isn't the little kiddies! Decide that the Gym Leader is too tough for ya and went on a break?"

"No, we haven't even battle her yet," I said calmly.

"Bah, you don't need to worry about her. She's not that strong anyway. Didn't stand a chance against my unstoppable Squirtle and Pidgeotto."

"You already beat her! And your Pidgey evolved?!" Karen cried.

Gary smirked. "Sure has. And I bet yours hasn't yet, huh, kiddie?"

Karen let loose a frustrated shout and sent out Pidgey, who preened herself as she stood on the ground. "Alright, Pidgey, evolve!" The little bird looked up at her Trainer, cocking her head and cooing. "Evolve!" As I expected, nothing happened. Pidgey went back to preening herself. "Evolve!" Pidgey hopped to the left and onto the bridge's guardrail, cocking her head as she looked at the fluffy clouds above. She hopped back down to her original position as Karen repeated, "Evolve, dammit!" Pidgey pecked at the ground, probably in the hopes of finding the crumbs of food someone had left. "Dammit, Pidgey, _evolve_!"

I sighed, placing a hand on Karen's shoulder as Gary doubled over in laughter.

"I seriously doubt evolution works like-"

I stopped when a light shone at our feet.

"What the-"

"No way!"

"Huh."

Pidgey was trembling, wreathed in the light, and she began to grow. The tuft of feathers on her grew longer, curling to behind her head, and she grew bigger, coming to about my stomach, when she before she came up to my knee.

The light dimmed down, and she stopped quaking. I could now see that her crest was red, and her tail feathers alternated between red and yellow. Pidgeotto looked up at me, then Gary, then at her Trainer. She chirped before flapping up and trying to stand on Karen's shoulder.

I say try because she apparently got heavier, causing Karen to toppled over and falling flat on her face. Pidgeotto flapped in mid-air cooing questioningly.

"Ow." Karen sat up, looking at her newly evolved Pokemon. "Let's not do that again, 'kay? You really heavy now."

Pidgeotto chirped, perching on the guardrail.

Gary's mouth hung open, and had a singled pointing at Pidgeotto, who was now preening herself.

"Y-you shouted at her and she... evolved... How the hell is that even possible!"

"It's not, you twit," I sighed. "Pidgeotto obviously was ready to evolve, and she did. No big deal. Charmander already evolved, too."

Gary whirled on me. "Charmander already evolved?! Don't tell me Bulbasaur already has, too!"

"No, she's still a Bulbasaur," Karen said, standing up.

"Sheesh, the loser's starter already evolved, and mine hasn't. Losers always have it better than us cool guys."

"You're about as cool as a Charizard's Fire Blast," I deadpanned.

"Bah, whatever," Gary said. "Next time you see me, I'll already have a Blastoise and five badges! See ya kiddies later!"

With that, he ran off, laughing.

"What a jackass."

"You said it."

* * *

I took in a deep breath, relishing the salty breeze that came in from the ocean just east of the Cerulean Cape. Just ahead, several meters from the edge of a cliff, stood a lone cabin.

"Is this it?"

"Most likely. It's the only house in the area."

"Then let's go get our Pokedexes fixed!"

Karen trotted up to the door of the cabin and knocked gently. We waited, and there was no reply. She frowned and knocked again. Nothing. She knocked harder. No one came to the door. Karen growled and knocked even harder.

"Where the hell is he?"

"Maybe he's not home," I suggested.

"Maybe." She started banging on the door. I watched her for a moment, amused and finding adorable how worked up she got, with her cheeks puffed out a bit, but figured it would be best not to break down the door of the home of someone we didn't even know. I was about to reach for her wrist when a voice came from inside the cabin.

"Alright, alright, ahready, I hear ya! Just stop it or ya'll break down mah door!"

Karen stopped and the door opened, revealing a man in his early twenties, his short brown hair unkempt, wearing a purple sweatshirt, beige khakis, brown loafers, and a white lab coat.

"How can I help ya?"

"Is your name Bill?" Karen asked.

"Thass me."

"Professor Oak sent us. He says you can fix our Pokedexes."

Bill blinked, looking between us. "The Professor? Are you Jack and Karen?"

"How do you know our names?" I asked warily.

Bill smiled, stepping aside. "The Professor called ahead. Come in, come in."

We stepped inside and Bill closed the door. I looked around. There was a medium-sized leather couch in the center of the room, a coffee table sitting on a rug in front of it. In the back of the room was a door, leading to another part of the cabin. Set up in a corner of the room was a bank of consoles, various small lights flashing or remaining steady. Scattered all over it were countless sheets of paper and styrofoam coffee cups.

"Ya'll have tah pahdon the mess. Was up late lass night working on some thangs, juss woke up." Bill scooped up the papers and tossed them onto the couch, and dropped the coffee cups into a wastebasket.

I glanced up at the digital wall clock mounted on the wall above the consoles. It's already three o'clock."

Bill jerked his head up to see for himself and grunted. "Well, would ya look at that. Musta been up latah then I thought. Anyway, what's tha problem with the Pokedexes?"

We took them out of our bags and handed them to Bill. He inspected them, turning them over.

"About a week ago we dropped them into a river," I explained. "When we tried to scan a Pokemon with them, it kept showing us the results of another Pokemon."

"Must be a problem with tha Pokemon recognition software, then."

"That's what I was thinking."

"Shouldn't be a problem tah fix, then. It'll take me an hour, and they'll be good as new. Until then, just make ya'll selves at home."

We stood awkwardly as Bill sat down, opened up the Pokedexes, and started tinkering with them.

"So... nice place you got here," Karen said, and I sighed at the pitiful attempt at small talk.

"Yeah, I know. Wouldn't be half as nice is Kasumi hadn't been around tah help furnish tha place." Bill grinned a goofy grin, one that oddly reminded me of Mitchell. "I swear to ya, that girl is an angel, and as beautiful as one, too."

"That's right, you're dating Misty's sister," I said. "You know, she's going to be Gym Leader soon."

Bill had been engrossed in his work, but that seemed to get his attention. He whirled in his chair to face us. "She is?"

"Yeah. Even tried battling me herself, even though she wasn't officially the Gym Leader."

Bill turned back to the Pokedexes, shaking his head. "Jeez, that girl sure is talented, tah be Gym Leader at thirteen. She must be tha youngest Gym Leader in all of Kanto history by now."

"Kasumi did say the paperwork would be done right about now, didn't she?" Karen asked.

I nodded and turned to step outside, Karen following behind. We let out our Pokemon to play while Bill worked inside. Magikarp plopped into the water and Pidgetto swooped through the air as I sat on a grassy incline, Karen taking her place next to me.

"Funny how all those Trainers we met were easy to beat," she commented.

"Yeah. Pretty pathetic, if you ask me."

She playfully slapped me, giggling. "Don't be mean. That kid tried his hardest to beat Charmeleon. It's the effort that counts, y'know."

"Would have stood a better chance if he had something else besides a Meowth."

"Then there was that one hiker with the two Graveler."

"Brock's Geodude was stronger than the two combined."

"Well, can't argue with that," she giggled as Magikarp jumped out of the water to catch a particularly large fly. Charmeleon lay down next to me, and Pikachu climbed on top of him. Karen's Bulbasaur and Pikachu snuggled up to her and she ran her hand down Pikachu's fur.

I lay back on the grass, linking my fingers together behind my head. Charmeleon scooted closer, and I felt the warmth coming off him enjoyable. I unsuccessfully stifled a yawn.

"I'm beat after those battles and the three hour walk here. Wake me up when Bill finishes."

"Sure thing!"

* * *

Karen watched Jack as he napped on the grass beside her, his Pokemon next to him. She had to admit it, he really did look cute when he slept. He scowled a lot lately, so it was nice to see something else beside it on his face. A gentle smile crept onto his lips as another light breeze came through, ruffling Karen's long hair. She ran a hand down it, thinking that it's gotten really long. It almost reached down to her butt now.

"Maybe I should get a haircut one of these days..." she muttered. Bulbasaur looked up at her from her place in Karen's lap. Karen smiled, placing a hand on her starter's head, who nuzzled it before lowering her head again.

Her Pikachu's ears twitched and she looked up, Karen mimicking her. Pidgeotto flapped down, and Karen felt a swell of pride in her chest. Her first evolved Pokemon! And she was so big now! As tall as Karen sitting down!

Pidgeotto hopped toward her, holding a pecha berry in her beak. She dropped it into her Trainer's hand, cocking her head.

"You want me to break it up into little bits?"

Pidgeotto cooed in response, which Karen took to mean yes. She split the berry in half and handed one to Pidgeotto, who hopped away with it. Karen shrugged, eating the rest. She took a sip of the bottle of water she had bought back in Cerulean and trickled a little onto her hand to clean the berry's juices off her hand.

She glanced over as Jack stirred when another breeze flew through. The locks of hair that poked out from beneath his cap were ruffled slightl,. She gently slid a hair away from his brow and Karen felt a flutter in her chest. She looked away, placing a hand over it, before sighing. She lay back down alongside Jack, Pikachu snuggling closer, and watched the thing clouds as they inched across the sky.

A few minutes later, she laced the fingers of her hand with Jack's.

* * *

I felt something poking me in my ribs.

"Just five more minutes, mom..."

There was nothing for a minute before something pinched my cheek. My eyes flew open and went to Karen, who had a firm hold on my cheek. She was _way_ too close, her nose just inches from mine.

"Please let me go," I said, hoping to everything that was good and holy in the world that she wouldn't noticed my guaranteed blush.

"I don't wanna," she said playfully, pinching my other cheek with her other hand. She turned my head to face hers and she came even closer. I knew there was no hiding my sure-to-be-red-as-a-tomato face. She squeezed my cheeks, giggling. "Oh, you are so _cute_. Your cheeks are as poofy as a baby's!"

"T-They are not," I stammered, my heart hammering in my chest. "N-N-N-Now let me go. Please."

She came even closer, if that was possible, until our noses touched and I could feel her sweet breath on my face. Her lips brushed mine as she spoke.

"But I don't wanna let you go," she whispered.

My best friend Karen Hart took my lips in a kiss, and my eyes flew as wide as dinner plates, my throat went dry, and I thought I was gonna have a heart attack. She pulled away after a good thirty seconds, her face flushed and lips wonderfully moist. She smiled sweetly, my heart fluttered, and she leaned in again, wrapping my lips in another kiss. I felt something enter my mouth from hers, something thumped me hard on my chest, and I jolted up and awake, panting, my heart jackhammering faster than I had ever experienced in my life.

"About time, Sleeping Beauty."

I jumped at Karen's voice and my hear damn near stopped as I frantically scooted away from her. "Ah, K-Karen, what're you doin' here!"I asked shrilly.

"What the hell's wrong with you?" she asked.

I looked away, licking my lips. I paused then reached up, gingerly touching them. I thought I tasted the faint sweetness of a sitrus berry and I turned to Karen, who watched me, confused.

"Did..." I didn't want to say it, didn't want to say it at _all_, but I had make sure that that was just a dream and that my best friend did _not_ just do that. "Did you... kiss me?"

Her cheeks filled with color and she looked away abruptly. "Of course I didn't. Why the hell would I? Beside, you're not pretty enough to be Sleeping Beauty."

I sighed shakily, licking my lips again. I wanted to retort that she had just called me that, but couldn't. Despite myself, I kind of found myself... hoping that it hadn't been a dream. I actually liked it.

"Why?"

I shook my head. "It, it's nothing. Is Bill finished yet?" I asked, trying to change the subject.

Karen seemed thankful for the change because she took a breath. "Yeah. He called for us just now."

We stood and recalled our Pokemon before going back inside the cabin. Bill was fiddling with our Pokedexes, apparently making some last minute adjustments, before whirling, holding them up like trophies.

"Ta da! Good as new! Here ya guys go." Bill presented them to us with a flourish and we took them, thanking him for fixing them.

"Ah, it was no problem," he said with a dismissive wave. "Was mah pleasure. They should work just fine now when yew scan a Pokemon. Plus," he added as we put them away, "I also installed a simple text messaging function. Now yew guys can keep in contact with each othah wherever yew ah."

"Really?" Karen gasped. "Cool! Thanks, Bill!"

I only nodded, still a little shaken by my dream. What the hell was _that_ all about?

"It was mah pleasure. I've also waterproofed them, so no amount of water will mess 'em up. Now go on, ya little scamps, and give my regards to the Professor."

"'Kay!"

We left Bill's cabin and set off on the three hour trip back to Cerulean City with our repaired Pokedexes.

* * *

"And then, she swooped down, like, whoosh!" Karen swiped her hand down, fingers pointed, mimicking Pidgeotto's dive toward a Spearow that had attacked her when she tried to get a berry from a tree. "And she knocked the Spearow away, and it squawked once before it flew off! Man, Pidgeotto is so tough now. She's, like, totally unstoppable now!"

"I wouldn't say that," I said. "But she really is stronger now."

On our way back we were challenged to a double battle by a young picnicking Pidgeot scout couple. My dream was still fresh in my mind, and seeing the two kids the same age as us being boyfriend and girlfriend shook me, enough that Pidgeotto was able to defeat their three of their Pokemon all by herself.

"You were pretty bad back there," Karen commented. "Charmeleon was barely able to take down that girl's Oddish. She must've been tough."

"Yeah, I guess," I murmured.

"Come on, Jack, you gotta get your head in- Hey, what's that?"

I looked at her then at where she was pointing. On the side of the road lay a small yellow... thing. It wasn't moving, and at this distance it looked like a blanket. I said so, but then noticed a smear of red on it. I scowled, then my eyes grew wider when I saw it move.

"It's a Pokemon!" I said, running up to it, Karen right behind.

I reached the little creature, curled up in the dirt, it's thin thigh sliced open. The bleeding had stopped for the most part, but it was still trickling, which could only mean the cut had happened recently.

"What Pokemon is it?"

I took out my Pokedex and scanned it. "It's an Abra, and-" I paused, studying the screen.

"What? What is it?"

I scowled, a growl rising in my throat. "This Abra knows some pretty strong moves... Shadow Ball, Shockwave, Calm Mind..."

"So?"

"That means that this was a Trainer's Pokemon. He's been abandoned here."

Karen gasped. "That bastard! How could he!"

I said nothing, gently moving the Abra onto its back. It took in a breath, and I touched his forehead. "My God, he's burning up. He'll probably die soon."

"We gotta help him then!"

I nodded. I slowly slid my hands underneath the Abra's back and legs and gently lifted him up. "How far are we from Cerulean?"

"Um... it's been like... more than two hours since we left Bill's place," Karen said. "But I can see Cerulean over there, so we may be... twenty minutes away?"

"Damn it. Don't know if he'll last that long."

"We have to try!"

I met Karen's eye, seeing how they shimmered with unshed tears, and I nodded. "Let's-" I was cut off a loud crack boomed across the sky. I looked up at the darkening clouds. "Oh, you gotta be fucking kidding me."

"Jack!"

"What?"

"You just said fuck!" She gasped and slapped her hands over her mouth.

"You just said it, too."

"But we're not supposed to say that!"

"That doesn't matter now! We gotta Abra to the Center, now!" I broke into a sprint, Karen running alongside me.

"Are we really gonna _run_ all the way there!" she shouted.

"We can't take our time! This Abra'll die if we do!" The Abra stirred in my arms, letting out a low moan. Something splashed on my face and I shook it. Another drop, then another, and more and more.

"Oh, please don't start raining," I puffed as a droplet, way bigger than the others, burst on the Abra's forehead. _Maybe it'll help him cool off, _I thought as the drops came faster and harder.

Our feet pounded on the dirt, which was quickly becoming mud. Water trickled down my temple, down my cheeks, down my shirt. The bill of my cap kept it out my eyes, thankfully, but it was already raining hard, and it was only coming down faster. I was afraid that it wold soon be pouring.

I stepped into a puddle, splashing the water all over my pants leg and Karen's shoes, but we ignored it. We kept our attention on breathing and running, running, as fast as we could.

* * *

Karen's bag slapped wetly against her hip as she struggled to keep pace with the more physically fit Jack. She was puffing, while Jack didn't seem as winded as her. Her gaze went to the Abra in his arms. He didn't move at all, but Karen could see his chest rising and falling, but only barely.

The Abra was in serious danger. Karen knew there was no way she could keep up with Jack at full sprint, she never could. So the fact that she was actually running next to him, or just a little behind, had to mean one thing: he wasn't going at his full speed. He didn't want to leave her behind

Her heart fluttered that that thought, but no matter how sweet it was she knew that the Abra would not survive unless Jack got him to the Pokemon Center as quickly as possible.

She screwed her eyes shut as she felt a stitch in her side. "Jack..." She only puffed his name out, and he didn't hear her. He still had his head down as he ran, shielding the Abra from the worst of the pounding rain.

"Jack!" she tried again. Nothing.

"_Jack!_"

Jack's head snapped to her.

"Go... on without... me!"

His eyebrows shot up. "What? No!"

"Do it!"

"No! Karen, I'm not leaving you behind!"

Karen couldn't tell whether the flutter in her chest was from the exertion of keeping up with Jack, or something else entirely.

"Jack, I know you... can run way... faster than this!" she shouted between breaths.

Jack turned to face forward, clutching the Abra tighter.

"I'm just slowing... you down!"

Jack's jaw clenched and he shook her head. "No!"

Karen put in another burst of speed to come up alongside him. "Jack, go! If you... don't get there in... time, Abra'll... die!"

"Dammit, Karen, no!"

_How many times will he say that?_ "Jack, go! I'll be fine! Just... _GO_!"

He gazed at her, jaw clenched tight, before shutting his eyes and lowering his head. His legs began pumping faster, and he started pulling ahead. He kept going, running faster and faster, quickly leaving Karen behind. She watched his back as he sprinted, watched until the heavy downpour swallowed him up and she couldn't see him anymore.

Karen kept up her pace for a few moments longer and began to slow down. She stopped, doubling over and resting her hands on her knees. She screwed her eyes shut, sucking in deep, long gulps of air. The pain in her side flared up when she straightened up. She lay a hand on her side, the rain pounding her and dripping off the edges of her hat.

_Please save him, Jack_.

"Karen?"

Karen jumped, turning to the owner of the voice.

Misty stood behind her, dressed in a poncho and holding an umbrella. She looked up the road, frowning.

"Was that Jack just now?"

Karen nodded and quickly explained to Misty what happened.

"Is it that serious?"

"Yeah."

"Then we can't waste time!" Misty pointed at a river nearby. "This river goes all the way to the Nugget Bridge. If we ride on it we can get there much faster!"

"How? I don't have a Water Pokemon!"

Misty winked. "But I do!" She scurried over to the bank of the river, followed by Karen, and sent out a Pokemon into the water. It turned away from them, offering its back to them.

"C'mon, Karen, Starmie'll get us there real quick!"

Misty folded her umbrella and stuck it in her pack, jumping on to Starmie's back. Karen hesitated, looking in the direction Jack had run, but at Misty's shout to get the hell on, she jumped on as well, tightly gripping one of Starmie's ten arms.

Once they were both secure, Misty patted Starmie's hide and it zoomed down the river, way faster than Karen would have though possible. Water sprayed up behind Starmie, drenching Karen to the bone, but she ignored the cold, ignored the shivering it brought on, worrying about Jack and Abra.

"How bad was the Abra's injury?" Misty suddenly asked.

"He was injured really bad. He had a huge gash in his thigh, and Jack said he was burning up."

"So someone just _abandoned_ him?"

"That's what it looked like!"

"What _asshole _leaves a Pokemon for dead?!"

Karen only shrugged, her teeth beginning to chatter. She adjusted her grip on Starmie, and just in time, too. Starmie suddenly jerked to the side, almost knocking its passengers off.

"Starmie, what's wrong!" Misty asked her Pokemon.

One of the starfish's arms bent forward, motion at something. Karen and Misty saw something floating in the water ahead of them: what seemed to be a blob of blue with two red circles.

"What the hell is that?" Karen asked Misty, who shook her head.

"Dunno! Let's just av-" She was cut short the blob shot forward, and two long ropes came out of the water. Starmie swerved and the ropes stabbed into the water where it had been before. The blob impossibly turned and began to chase after themselves.

"Dammit, what the hell is it!"

"Wartortle, Goldeen, keep it away from us!" Misty held out two Pokeballs and they snapped open, the Pokemon sliding into the water. The blue blob descended into the water with them.

"Will they be okay?" Karen asked.

Misty smirked. "Of course! They're a Gym Leader's Pokemon, after all!" She winked, and her confidence put Karen a little more at ease.

Just then, something came flying out of the water, flopping onto the bank of the river. Goldeen floundered around, trying to maneuver itself to get back into the water, but then one of the dark ropes shot out of the water and slammed down onto the fish. There was a loud crack and it stopped moving.

"Goldeen!" Misty screamed as the fish was pulled into the water, smearing the grass with blood. "Dammit! Damn it all!"

Karen watched Misty as she grit her teeth, eyes shining with tears.

The blob never came back. Fortunately, Wartortle did, surfacing alongside Starmie. Misty thanked her for her help before recalling her. They rode in silence for several minutes, the rain not letting up at all, the waters churning violently.

"There it is!" Misty said, pointing ahead.

Karen could see the Nugget Bridge coming rapidly closer, and they zoomed by underneath it.

"The river runs right by the Pokemon Center!" Misty said. "We're almost there!"

"Jack, I hope you got there in time," Karen whispered, gripping Starmie tighter.

* * *

I burst through the doors of the Pokemon Center, sopping wet and spilling water on the spotless linoleum floor, surprising three people at the entrance. Nurse Joy looked up at the commotion and gasped.

"Young man, are you alright?" she asked, watching the water fall of me in waterfalls.

I trudged up to the counter, panting, the Abra in my arms not moving. "Found.. this Abra... on the road... injured... needs help..."

"Oh my God!" The nurse ran around the counter, calling over her Chansey. By now a group of people had gathered and she had to push her way through. "Is it okay?"

I shook my head. "Don't know... might be almost dead..."

"Here, give it to me." I handed the nurse the Abra as her Chansey, accompanied by another one, ran over, pushing a gurney. Nurse Joy gently lay the Abra down and began shouting out orders to the Chansey. One of them brought over a tray of instruments and Nurse Joy took a thermometer. She placed it in the Abra's mouth, waited, and took it back out. She gasped at the result."_107_? It's got in incredibly high fever!"

"Will he make it?"

"I don't know. I've never seen a fever _this _high! Leave this to me," she said, wheeling Abra away through a set of doors with the words "Emergency Room" stenciled above them.

I stumbled back, trying to catch my breath. My legs gave out from under me and I collapsed in a puddle of rainwater.

"Hey, kid, you okay?" someone asked, helping me up.

"Fine... fine..." I looked up and met the green eyes of the same teal-haired girl from earlier today. She scowled deeply and turned, her ponytail swishing, and walked away. I watched her leave just as someone else ran in through the door.

"Jack!"

"Jack, thank God you made it!"

Karen tackled me in a hug and Misty came trotting up. Both were drenched, more than I was, and Karen was shaking.

"Jack, what happened to the Abra?" Karen asked.

"Nurse Joy took him."

"Will he be okay?"

"I... I don't know. Nurse Joy said he was in bad shape, had a really high fever. He might not survive."

Karen turned to gaze at the door Nurse Joy had taken Abra through, and squeezed my hand.

* * *

**Author's Note: **TRIPLE UPDATE FOR THE WIN.

Review, please?


	18. Into the Dragon's Lair

_Chapter 18-Into the Dragon's Lair_

Wow. This is, by far, my longest chapter yet, at eleven thousand words. Damn. Maybe it's _too_ long? I'll let you be the judge of that. The next up date will be a double, so look forward to that.

* * *

I sat in one of the chairs in the main reception area of the Pokemon Center. My clothes were still soaked, but I didn't care, didn't care that I was dripping water onto the floor and seat. It had already been over an hour since Nurse Joy had taken Abra into the emergency room. The group of people had long since dispersed, Misty left for her house to change, and Karen went to our room to shower and dry her clothes. Only I remained, head bowed. Waiting.

"Jack, what're you still doing here? Go change, you'll get sick."

I didn't look up at Karen. "I'll be fine," I said softly.

"Here we go again with the, 'I'll be fine' crap. Look, you will not be fine if you stay in those clothes. You ran for over ten minutes straight through a downpour, you're completely drenched, and you'll get sick." Karen stepped closer. "Come on, go shower and change. I'll put your clothes in the dryer."

Normally, the thought of Karen handling my clothes would have left me flustered, but now right now I was too exhausted and worried to care. "I'l be fine," I repeated. "I just don't know whether Abra won't be."

Karen paused, and the water steadily dripped down to the floor. She shifted from one foot to other, and I didn't have to see her to know she was biting her lip. Then she grabbed me by the back of my shirt, hauling me up to my feet. Did I ever mention how much stronger she was than she looked?

I met her hard gaze as she said, "Don't worry about Abra, Jack, he'll be fine. I'm sure Nurse Joy will save him, and you'll just have to trust her to do her thing. But what you need to do right now is take a nice hot shower, change into dry clothes, and not get sick so we can have your Gym battle tomorrow."

"Oh, yeah. I forgot about the Gym battle..."

Karen's expression softened into a kind smile that got me all warm and fuzzy inside. "That's right, tomorrow is when you battle Misty for a badge. Now, go and shower, you're still soaking wet."

"Okay. Alright, just let me go now."

She did so and I stalked off to our room with her in tow, my shoes squelching at each step. She tossed me a towel and shoved me into the bathroom, slamming the door behind me with orders of leaving my wet clothes where she could easily reach them while I showered. After all, it'd be just too weird and all sorts of creepy to be in there while I took a shower!

I had been trying to ignore it the entire time I sat in the reception area, but I was shivering pretty badly by the time I stepped into the hot water. I let out a sigh at how _wonderful_ it felt after being soaked to the bone in the cold rain. The water ran over my body, chasing away the goosebumps that crawled over me.

I emerged a few minutes later, drying off and wrapping the towel around my waist. True to her word, Karen had taken my wet clothes, which I had set on the sink as close to the door as possible. I tilted my head at the heavy pounding the building took from the rain. Damn, it was _still_ raining this hard? Maybe there was a storm on the way. If there was, then I would have to postpone my Gym battle with Misty, and I didn't want to do that. Now that I had time to think about it, I was actually eager to go up against her now. I wanted to see how tough she was, to be Gym Leader when she was just a couple years older than me. If I played my cards right, then maybe I could be a Gym Leader at her age. Leader Jack... yeah, that sounds awesome...

I exited the bathroom and dug around in my backpack, pulling out my T-shirt and shorts. My legs were feeling weak, probably from the exertion of running so fast for so long. I stumbled over to my bed and fell on it. I lay with my face buried in the pillow for several moments, one of my legs dangling off the edge, before turning my head to look at the clock. _8:12_. I let out a tired sigh and hauled myself all the way up onto the bed, sliding into sleep.

I woke up at almost nine o'clock. I slowly sat up, my mouth opening wide with a yawn and stretching, before opening my eyes fully to see Karen sitting at the edge of my bed, gazing right at me. Her hat was hanging on one of her bed's posts, her long hair pulled back into a ponytail. I jumped with a surprised noise, scooting away from her, and she just grinned amusedly.

"Hey," she said, and I stared at her wide-eyed, the dream from this afternoon still fresh in my mind. "Your clothes are dry." She nodded over to them, all folded up nice and neat on the chair of the desk in the room. "Are you okay?"

I swallowed, taking several breaths, before responding. "Y-Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks."

Karen beamed before turning serious. "Jack, something happened on the way back."

"What?" I moved to sit next to her on the edge, making sure not to get _too_ close. "What happened?"

"Well, me and Misty came riding back on her Starmie. On the way, we were attacked by... something. Something in the water. It was a blue blob, and had two red circles on top. It killed Misty's Goldeen."

I scowled. "What was it?"

"I dunno," she answered with a shake of her head. "It was raining too hard to see clearly, and most of it was underwater, but it was pretty big. Bigger than Misty's Starmie, and that thing is almost as tall as me."

"Blue blob... red circles... some weird ropes..." I ran the description through every Pokemon whose appearance I knew. I couldn't think of anything. "You're sure it was a Pokemon? Not some piece of trash?"

"Nuh-uh. It actually moved."

"Then what the hell is it...?"

Karen shrugged, yawning. "Well, I'm gonna hit the hay. I'm bushed."

"'G'night."

She grunted as she slid into the covers of her bed. Soon afterward she was snoring away. I sat on my bed for a minute before deciding to see how Abra was doing. I slipped on my shoes and made my way to the reception area. Nurse Joy sat behind the counter and she looked up.

"How's Abra?" I asked.

Nurse Joy looked grim, and I began fearing the worst. She smiled then and stood, coming around the counter. "He's alive."

I sighed. "That's great."

"Would you like to see him? He's in a stable condition, and I'm sure he'd like to meet his savior."

I nodded and she led me toward a door to the left of the counter. We stepped through into an infirmary. There were about thirty beds in there, seven of them used. The nurse led me to the one in the far corner, where the Abra sat, staring at the stitched up wound on his thigh. He looked up as we approached, and I felt an odd sensation in my head, almost like... something was poking around. The Abra let out a soft noise, almost sounding surprised, as I moved over to him.

"How are you doing?" I asked softly.

_Alive_.

I blinked, stumbling away when I heard the voice in my head. I snapped my head back and forth, and Nurse Joy asked, "What is it?"

"Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?" She glanced around at the recuperating Pokemon. "Was it one of the Pokemon?"

I turned to look back at the Abra, who gazed up me calmly. I began feeling... curious, for some completely unexplainable reason, when I heard it again.

_You hear?_

I stared, wide-eyed, at the Abra. No doubt about it, the voice was coming from him.

_You hear? _he repeated, tilting his head. I nodded, and I suddenly felt happiness coming from somewhere.

_Old Trainer not hear_.

"Who was it?" I asked, remembering that he had been left for dead. Nurse Joy said something, probably asking who I was talking about, but I didn't hear her over my amazement of talking _telepathically_ with this Abra.

A kind of sad, resigned anger came over me, and I clenched a fist. At this point I figured out that these feelings were coming from Abra. Apparently, not only could he speak to me with thought, but with emotions, too.

_She bad Trainer. Say I weak. Other Pokemon hurt me when she say to make me strong. Cut me_. He glanced at the wound on his thigh.

"Do you know your old Trainer's name?" I asked, cold fury mounting.

He was silent before weakly shaking his head. _Do not know name. Only that she bad._

"Well, do you remember what she looks like?"

I began seeing an image of a face in my mind, and it began solidifying with more features, but not enough. I could make out light-colored hair, but beyond that, nothing besides the fact that it was a girl.

_Not strong enough to show Old Trainer._

I smiled at the little Psychic Pokemon. "It's okay. She won't hurt you again."

I felt an immense gratitude coming from him, so much that it almost brought a tear to my eye.

_Thank you, New Trainer_.

"Eh?"

_You are New Trainer._

"Since when?"

_Since New Trainer saved me._

"Wait, so you're saying that you... want to join me?"

The feelings of approval and gratitude, accompanied by a mental _Yes,_ confirmed it.

I watched as Abra raised his hand, placing it on my arm, and my brain lurched, the unsettling sensation of fingers probing through my mind lasting for only a few seconds, before I blinked rapidly and looked at him. He was smiling.

_You are New Trainer, Master Jack._

I raised my eyebrows. "You read my mind."

_Yes, Master._

"You don't have to call me that."

_As you wish, Master_.

I sighed. "Well, then, welcome aboard, Abra."

I felt happiness emanating from him.

"And I promise never to treat you like that. No one will ever hurt you again. I'll make sure of it."

_I know_.

I smiled.

"So, what just happened?"

I turned to Nurse Joy, having completely forgotten she was standing behind me the entire time.

"Did you just communicate telepathically with this Abra?"

"Yeah. He' s just joined my team."

"Wow," she breathed. "It's not often that someone can speak telepathically with a Pokemon, even a Psychic-type."

"Is it that rare?"

"Well..." The nurse pursed her lips. "The last one that I know of was a young girl from Viridian. That was two years ago. Then there's Sabrina..."

"Sabrina?"

The nurse nodded. "She's the Gym Leader in Saffron. She's a powerful psychic."

"So does that mean I'm psychic?"

"Could be. I don't know a lot about that stuff."

_Me, psychic? That is way cool. Then again, it could just be with Abra only..._

_Might be other Pokemon, Master._

I looked up at him sharply, then chuckled. "Oh, right, Psychic-type."

I could sense Abra was amused.

* * *

Early the next morning, at about seven, with a third Pokeball at my belt, I left the center to investigate what it was that attacked Karen and Misty. It could be a dangerous Pokemon. If it was, I had to either get rid of it, or alert the police. Karen was still asleep, it being seven in the morning, so I decided to let her sleep. No sense in waking her up when I was just gonna have a look around.

The rain had let up sometime last night, so there was no need to worry about a storm postponing my Gym Battle later today. I walked through the rain-slicked streets, making my way to the Nugget Bridge. When I got there, I noticed a bunch of kids milling around on it. Some of them held fishing poles, dangling the lines over the side, while others stood around and chatted. I ignored them, beginning to walk across the bridge, when one of them spotted me. He alerted the others and they all quickly converged on me. I was soon faced with a group of eight of them. They were all around my age, either a little younger or older. The oldest was probably fourteen, and the youngest couldn't be any older than ten.

"Where're you goin'?" the oldest one asked.

"Across the bridge," I answered dully. "Now please move."

"Aw, he said please!" one chortled. "Let's do what he says!"

They all laughed at that, and I sighed.

"Look, I'm in a hurry, so if you would let me through, that'd be great."

The old one gave a curt laugh, stepping forward. "Two thousand."

"What?"

"Two thousand poké and we'll let you pass."

I glared at him, then his posse behind him. "So you're running a toll road operation here, is that it?"

"Hell yeah!"

I shrugged. "Wonder what the police will have to say about this." I turned to go, hoping that the threat of the police would scare them off, but it only seemed to piss them off.

The oldest one latched onto my backpack and pulled me back. "Can't let you do that."

I smacked his arm away, noticing the group of kids muttering to themselves. "Then let me pass."

"Fine. One thousand and we'll let you go."

I sighed again, scowling. No way in hell I was giving these assholes my money to walk across a bridge that was supposed to be for everyone. I turned and calmly strode toward the side of the bridge, intending to move around them. One of them came forward and forcefully shoved me back.

"You heard the boss!" the kid shouted. "One thousand or you ain't passin'!"

I faced the boss of this band of twerps, who was smirking as if he had won. He stuck his hand up, palm up.

"No."

He sighed theatrically. "Okay, have it your way. Guys!"

The others began closing in and I looked over my shoulder at them. "Touch me, I will hurt you."

One of them began laughing. "_You'll _hurt_ us?_ Do you see how many of us there are?"

I turned to their boss. He waggled his eyebrows expectantly.

"What, are you such a coward that you need a crew of kids to fight for you?"

His eyebrow twitched.

_ Seems I hit a nerve, _I thought.

He scowled, cracking his knuckles. "Y'know, we _were_ gonna let you go with some of your money, but now I'm just gonna kick your ass and take all your stuff."

He swung and I jerked my head to the side. I took advantage of his surprise by grabbing his arm, pulling him forward, and slamming my knee into his stomach. He doubled over, wheezing, and my fist met his mouth. His lip split and blood flecked my knuckles. He shouted in pain before stumbling away and ordering the others to attack.

At this point, I was very grateful for the training Chuck gave me when I met him. If he hadn't trained me, I'm sure that I would have been quickly overwhelmed and on the floor, taking their kicks and punches. But, since he did, I dodged the first two's swings and hit them across the face with one kick. They stumbled away, leaving another one behind them open for a fist to the face. I felt the kid's nose crumple and he screamed, moving away, clutching at his gushing nose.

The other four closed in on me in a mass of punches and kicks. I backpedaled, trying to avoid them all, when one suddenly caught me across the cheeks. I got disoriented for a second, just enough for one of them to hit me in the stomach. I doubled over just as one of them grabbed my arms, lifting them above me, shouting at the others to whale away at me.

The three rushed forward, one of them hitting me in the stomach, another in the chest, another across the face. I felt my teeth tearing into my lip, and spit the blood into the face of one of my attackers. He reeled away, shouting in disgust, into the path of the other two. The stumbled over him, and one fell. The other managed to stay on his feet and he rushed forward. I jumped back, sticking out my leg, and he ran right into my foot face-first. He backed away, hands on his face and blood on his hands, and my foot came flying up, into his groin. He let out a high-pitched yelp, hands flying to the most sensitive of areas as he slid to the floor, whimpering and rocking back and fort.

"Hey man, you okay?" the one holding me asked, and I slammed the back of my head into his face. He let me go and I whirled, swinging my foot around and into his legs. He toppled over, head colliding with the side of the wall the lined the bridge. I lifted him up by the shirt collar and gave a quick, hard jab in the face. He slumped back and I turned to the two guys that had stumbled over each other. One of them was still trying to wipe my blood of his face.

"You'll pay for that!" he shouted as they ran forward. Behind them I saw their boss clutching the guardrail, holding a hand against his nose.

I dashed forward, elbowing the two charging buffoons aside, and sprinted at the boss. He saw me coming and swung his arm at me. I blocked it with my own and punched him in the face. He cried out and stumbled back. He turned to run north, away from Cerulean, but I grabbed him by the collar of his polo shirt and yanked him back. He yelped and I said, "Can't let you do that."

He snarled and tried to twist out of my grasp. I wrapped my arm around his neck, punched him in the back where I hoped his kidney was, then swung one leg in front of his. I swiped my leg back as I pulled him down, and he fell face-first. He tried to scrambled up, calling for his posse, but I stomped on his back, forcing him back down. Then I punched him in the head, slamming him into the floor. His shouts turned to groans, and I looked up at the remaining five.

"Holy crap, he took out the boss!"

"And Jimmy and Ted!"

"They were the toughest guys!"

"And he beat them so easily!"

"Screw this, I'm out!"

They all seemed to agree and ran off.

I looked down at the boss as he stirred beneath my foot. I lowered myself, placing my knee on his back and a hand on his head, pinning him to the ground, and leaned in close.

"Don't let me catch you doing this again, or I'll hurt you even more. Understand?"

He nodded frantically. I punched him again and he whimpered. Then I heard clapping.

I scowled, turning to the man that came stalking onto the bridge from Route 24 to the north.

"My, my, that was certainly an entertaining bout. You handled those children like a pro."

I stood, leaving the kid's boss trembling on the ground. "Uh, thanks?"

The man stopped just in front of me, wearing a thin jacket and black slacks.

"Yes, yes, you certainly have that air about you. You're the kind of person that gets things done, right?"

"I... guess."

The man grinned. "Wonderful! With your current skills and a little more training, you could become just as good, if not better, than that little uppity bitch..."

"Who?"

The man seemed to not have noticed he spoke out loud. "Ah, just... someone I know. Now then, I'd like to offer you a proposition."

_I don't think I like where this is going._

"How would you..." He paused for dramatic effect, and a breeze came through. His jacket opened up with the wind, and my eyes widened.

Underneath he wore a black shirt, with a large, red R emblazoned on the front.

I stumbled back as he finished.

"Like to join Team Rocket?"

* * *

Some distance away from the Nugget Bridge, a certain teal-haired girl stood, watching.

She had come to investigate when a bunch of kids had run by her, yelling about some 'tough sone of a bitch' that had beat up their boss had piqued her curiosity. But, looking at him now, bleeding from the mouth and in shock of something the man before him said, he didn't look tough, at all. Even if he had beat those three guys on the floor by himself, he looked weak.

She recognized him from the night before. He had looked like such a weak, cowardly bitch, obsessing over the Abra like that. She couldn't believe anyone would do something like that for an _Abra_. What a weakling.

Scowling, her ponytail fluttering in the gentle wind, the girl leaned against a wall to watch.

* * *

Perched in a tree, a lone figure watched the Team Rocket member talking to the boy.

The figure smirked. The boy was an interesting one, not like others. A lot tougher than those kids. It probably helped that his father was a Gym Leader and that those black belts helped train him. That member was a recruiter, tasked with finding any prospective members to their organization. The figure had also was given him the responsibility of teaching a lesson to some whiny bastard who had come to them in desperation. That could wait, though. This was going to get_ very _entertaining.

With a satisfied smile, the figure decided to sit back and watch before leaving to report to the boss.

* * *

"You're with Team Rocket?"

The man nodded. "Indeed. And I am extending an invitation for you to join us."

"No way in hell!" I snarled. "I've seen the kinds of things you do. Attacking people for their Pokemon, stealing from the Pewter Museum. Two of you even _killed my Rattata_!"

He frowned. "No one was assigned to this area recently... Ah, no matter. Whatever these two did, know that I had nothing to do with it. I am a simply a humble... recruiter. Now, I ask again: will you join Team Rocket?"

"No."

He sighed. "I suppose I should rephrase that. You _will _join."

"No."

"Then it seems I have no choice. You now know I am Team Rocket, and you could go to the police and give my presence here away. Disposing of a child shouldn't be very difficult, not at all."

With that, he yanked a knife out from the small of his back, where I could only assume he had a sheathe for it, and lunged with it extended. I jumped back, just barely avoiding the tip of the blade. He swiped again, I twisted to avoid it, and he slashed a third time. I leaned back, the blade passing over my nose, and shot up, latching onto his wrist. I slammed my elbow down on his wrist and he cried out, dropping the knife. It clinked as it bounced off the guardrail and plopped into the water below.

The Team Rocket goon growled at his lost weapon, and I punched him before kicking him away. Undeterred, he dashed forward, swinging a fist. I lifted my hand and it slapped into my palm. My leg swung up, aiming to hit him in the groin, but the grunt caught it.

"You're fast, kid, but speed isn't always enough."

His other hand shot forward and wrapped around my throat. He pushed forward and we toppled over, him on top of me, other hand pinning my arm to the ground. I tried to punch him with my other fist, but I couldn't get enough leverage to put any power behind it.

"Too bad for you, kid, to have met me today. You might've still alive by the end of the day." He chuckled, tightening his grip on my throat.

_What is it with people always trying to choke me?_ was all I was able to think before a horrible pounding cropped up in my head and my vision began to darken.

"Shame you have to die. You seem like a nice enough-"

Something came hurtling out of a tree and toward the grunt. It sliced into his thigh and his words were cut off as he screamed.

"What the fuck!"

He rolled off, releasing me, and I scrambled away, coughing as I sucked in air. The Team Rocket goon sat up against the guardrail, holding his thigh. Jutting from the flesh was a knife, the blade looking like it was embedded deep into his thigh.

"Ugh, don't tell me that _bitch_ is here..." he muttered, taking hold of the knife's handle. He pulled in several quicks breaths, steeling himself, and I ran forward. He looked up at my foot as it slammed into his head, crushing it between the sole of my shoe and the low wall of the bridge. He cried in pain and rage, trying to stand, but I stomped on his head again. He went limp, his head rolling to the side, blinking rapidly. I yanked him forward by his shirt and punched, again and again and again and again.

When my knuckles seemed about ready to split open I stopped. I reached down and yanked the knife out of his thigh. He screamed and I put the edge of the blade against his neck.

"I _hate_ Team Rocket," I growled. My hand trembled, and I couldn't tell whether the blood that trickled down his neck was from the blade or if I had cut into him a bit. He watched me nervously, his eyes flitting over my face. I pressed the blade harder against his neck and he gulped.

But then I thought of Rattata. I thought of how some Team Rocket goon had shot and killed him. I thought of Karen, and of how she would react if I did kill this man.

Her face, streaked with tears, flashed in my mind, and I dropped the knife. It clattered to the ground and skittered through the small gap at the bottom of the guardrail, falling into the water.

"What's wrong?" the man jeered. "You ain't got the balls to kill me, kid?"

I stomped on his head again and yanked him up. For all his boasting and theatrics, he was really light, almost skin and bones. He tried to resist, but I punched him again. I lifted him up as high as I could onto the guardrail.

Seeing my intentions, he began panicking. "Hey, hey, kid, lemme go! I'll just leave, just lemme go!"

With a final push he toppled over the guardrail, and into the water, where he was quickly swept away.

It was silent.

I looked up at the tree, where the knife had come flying from. For a moment, I thought I felt someone watching me, but then the tree rustled and something dropped down. Whatever it was was hidden by bushes and the shadow of the tree. The figure looked at me for a split second before it moved and was gone. What the hell was that? _Who_ was it? And why was this Team Rocket guy here?

I thought back to what Chuck said: I've gotten Team Rocket's attention. Maybe they were now sending people after me. But if they wanted to kill me... why not do it when I was asleep or something? Something wasn't right. I shook my head and forced those thoughts out of my head and set off for where Karen said she and Misty had been attacked.

* * *

The teal-haired girl was amazed.

The man had attacked that kid, and after a brief struggle the boy threw him over the bridge.

The girl scowled. Maybe that kid wasn't as weak as she thought. He was still weak, she could see that, but maybe she might not have given him enough credit. He could be a worthy opponent.

The girl turned and walked away.

* * *

I reached the area where I pulled ahead of Karen when we had been running back to Cerulean yesterday. At least, it seemed like the area. I wasn't too sure. I carefully made my way down the rain-slicked slope and toward the bank of the river. I looked downstream, then up, and spotted something. Some twenty yards upstream the river broke off into a smaller one that lead away from the main body. But what had my attention was the blue blob with red circles on top of it floating in the water.

Scowling, I sprinted along the bank, heading toward it. The blob bobbed in the water before it began moving down the smaller river. It lost sight of it when it went underwater. I wanted to follow after it, but couldn't see a way to. I could swim across the river-it didn't look too deep-but was afraid the blob would come for me if I did. I stopped, scowling and opening and closing my fists. I looked back and forth, and saw a way I could cross.

Further upstream was a fallen tree, making a makeshift bridge across the river. Maybe it got knocked over last night, or a Pokemon toppled it. I decided I didn't care how it fell and ran over to it. I inspected it, making sure it would support my weight and not snap, dropping me into the water. I slowly climbed on top, carefully standing up. I held out my arms for balance and began inching my way across.

I made it across without incident and hopped down onto the bank. I glanced back at the tree, hoping it would still be here when I came back, and began following the smaller river.

I traipsed alongside the water, seeing no sign of the blue blob. Along the way I picked up a branch that was way longer than I was tall and slid it into the water. The stick was about seven and a half feet long, and the water came up to just a few inches from the end of it. It wasn't too deep, and I wondered what kind of Pokemon it could be.

Half an hour later I arrived at a lake. A pretty big one, at that. It must have been at least one hundred yards wide, if not longer, and God knew how deep. I stepped up to the edge of the water and peered in. That blue blob came down this river, and it lead here, and unless it backtracked and made its way out to sea, than it was here. I licked my lips nervously as I watched the water for signs of movement. I squinted when I thought I saw something deep below the surface, but then nothing. I frowned. Must be my eyes playing tricks on me.

I looked out across the lake. The waters lapped gently at the bank, and gentle breezes blew by every now and then. Hard to believe something as peaceful as this lake could be hiding something-

A shadow rushed up from the depths and I jumped back just as two thick ropes shot out of the water and slammed down where I was just a second before. I reached for Pikachu's Pokeball, ready to send him out on what had to be a Water-type. But then a _third_ rope came hurtling out of the water. I was unprepared for it, thinking that there were only two, since Karen hadn't mentioned any others. It was then, as the rope coiled around my ankle, that I thought in retrospect that this thing had to have more of these ropes, and usually only used two at a time.

The rope-or tentacle, it had to be a tentacle, with how long, thick and slimy it was-pulled me toward the water, and I clawed at the ground in an effort to stop myself. It was no use, though. The tentacle was way stronger than me, and with one final yank my hands came away from the grass and I was pulled underwater. For a fleeting second I thought of all my stuff in my pack and how it was gonna all be soaking wet, and how the Pokedex was in there, but then I remembered that I had far bigger problems to worry about. I twisted around, trying to break free, but the tentacle only coiled even tighter. I spun myself in the water, clawing upward, even as the surface got further and further away as I was dragged deeper into the water.

I looked down and saw a blue blob with two red circles on top, but then noticed what looked like a pincer on its bottom. The water stung at my eyes, and I wasn't able to make out what it was at first, but the pincer thing gave it away and a jolt went through me.

The Tentacruel seemed to be looking right at me, almost as if it were relishing the fact that it caught human prey.

But I wasn't about to let myself become fish food. With my lungs already begging for air, I took a Pokeball and sent out Magikarp, who immediately jumped into action.

He rushed through the water, down toward the Tentacruel. It shot a tentacle at Magikarp but he twisted, avoiding it, then spun, slamming his tail into the other Pokemon. He must have had some incredible force behind it because he sent the Tentacruel reeling. It let me go and Magikarp turned right around and rushed back. I grabbed onto his scaled body, my lungs burning, screaming for fresh air, and he hauled me up to the surface.

When we were just a few feet away I let go of Magikarp and clawed up. I broke the surface, gasping and sucking in lungfuls of air.

"Thanks, Magikarp," I said to my Pokemon. He maneuvered to look into the water, then rushed forward and into my gut, pushing me away just as three tentacles shot up through the surface where we had been.

The Tentacruel's body surfaced, and it's eyes peered at me from just above the water. The water around it churned just before two tentacles came for us. I grabbed onto Magikarp and he shot through the water, out of the tentacles' reach.

"Go!" I shouted as the Tentacruel came for us. I had never battled with Magikarp before, had no idea how good he was in battle, but right now he was the only one of my Pokemon I could rely right now, and I trusted him.

Magikarp rocketed through the water toward the Tentacruel, astounding me with his speed, and the other Pokemon tried to grab him with a tentacle. Magikarp leapt out of the water before it could get him. He fell toward the Tentacruel, who looked on, uninterested, and Magikarp whirled. His tail slapped into the Tentacruel, it screeched in shock and plummeted underwater from the force of it. I looked on, amazed at how much _strength _he had in that tail of his.

Magikarp fell into the water as I began clawing desperately for the bank. A shadow rushed forward under the water, and something ensnared my ankle. With a desperate cry I tried futilely to stay on the surface before being yanked under again. This time, though, the Tentacruel was descending into the deep much faster than before. I barely had a chance to suck in a good breath and now my lungs were already burning. I twisted and bent down, yanking at the tentacle. Magikarp's orange form zipped past and slammed into the Tentacruel head-on. It slowed its descent but its grip around my ankle didn't falter. In fact, it seemed to tighten so much that I thought it might break my ankle.

The Tentacruel yanked me around, and another tentacle shot out toward the incoming Magikarp. It hit him and sent him hurtling away through the water. I floated in the water just below the blue dome of the Tentacruel's head, and found myself looking into the Pokemon's eye. It watched me as I stared at it, knowing that I was unable to resist against it, to fight it. I could see a horrible intelligence in that single eye, and I knew that it also knew that I couldn't fight it. I was just a squishy kid, with only a Magikarp able to help me. Any moment now it could decide to end it in one of several ways: it could crush me with a tentacle, it could hold me underwater until I drowned, it could rip me apart. It knew what it could do to me, so it didn't feel the need to rush into finishing me off. Maybe it wanted to enjoy this moment of total dominance before killing me.

But then another tentacle came up, and another, both wrapping themselves around my body, pinning my arms against me. They tightened around my chest, allowing precious bubbles of air to spew. I snapped my mouth shut. Then, slowly, surely, it began reeling me in, toward the pincers in its underside. I briefly wondered why, but then, through the stinging of the water on my bare eyes, I noticed movement in the dark recess under the Tentacruel's dome. It... looked almost like a... beak?

It took a moment for it to register that it was planning on eating me, but when it did, I began struggling in a panic. It was futile, though, because it tightened its grip on me. I twisted and turned, biting my lips to make sure they didn't open and let more air out. But then, suddenly, the Tentacruel stopped when I was just a few feet away. It was still before looking into the depths. It did nothing for several agonizing seconds, but then I felt its tentacles loosen. I shoved my arms out, breaking free, just as an orange blur shot into the Tentacruel, knocking away. The Tentacruel whirled to face Magikarp as he came around for another attack, and a huge shockwave rippled through the water toward him. Magikarp flitted to the side but was caught in the edge of what looked like a Water Pulse and spun wildly. The Tentacruel moved forward, two tentacles raised to attack, and Magikarp recovered enough to face it.

Then they both abruptly stopped.

I didn't waste any more time and began frantically kicking for the surface. My movement spurred the dueling Water-types into action. Magikarp rushed toward me and I whirled toward him just before he rushed into my stomach and began shooting for the surface. I spared a glance down into the deep. More air bubbled out of my mouth when I opened it in shock before clamping it shut.

Instead of following after us, like I had expected it to do, the Tentacruel was instead going _away_, almost as if it were...

I horrible, icy chill shivered down my spine and I turned my head to look over my shoulder. I let out a garbled scream, even more air rushing out, and clamped a hand over my mouth.

Farther down was a huge, serpentine figure, at least twenty feet long, and really thick. It had tall fins on its back and more around its face. The giant thing ignored us in favor of going after the retreating Tentacruel.

My body slipped away from Magikarp, and I shot my arms out to grab hold of his body, his fin working endlessly, propelling the two of us through the water and away from the hostile depths. I glanced back once more, crushing my hand against my mouth to keep it closed. The giant serpent quickly caught up with the Tentacruel, which whirled to face it. A rippled shot through the water and into the serpent's face, stopping it in its tracks. It floated in the water, shaking its head, vulnerable to attack from the Tentacruel, and attack it did. It shot forward, two tentacles extended, the points glowing a sickly purple. It jabbed the end into the serpent, which wailed in pain and thrashed about. The Tentacruel took this chance and fled, quickly disappearing into the depths and out of sight. The serpent stopped it throes of pain and glanced about. Seeing that the Tentacruel was gone it looked up, and I snapped my head toward the surface as we rapidly approached it. The sunlight refracted through the water, and the waters became lighter and lighter, and we broke through, and not a moment too soon. If we had taken any longer, I was afraid that I wouldn't have been able to hold my breath any longer and would've drowned.

As soon as my head slid above the water I began gasping, sucking in deep breaths, refilling my grateful lungs with fresh air. I had let go of Magikarp when we surfaced, and now I raised shaking arms to hold onto him again. He turned to haul me toward the bank and stopped. My head was drooping behind his body as I sucked in more air, blocking my view of directly in front of us. When he stopped moving through the water I lifted my head, and my heart jumped into my throat. There were bubbles of water rising to the surface, ripples spreading out from the point that they popped. Magikarp moved back, bringing me with him, and the water bulged for a second before something huge exploded out of the water. It was huge, blue, and, worst of all, serpentine. It kept rose out of the water, and rose, and kept going, until it towered a good fifteen feet above us. The Pokemon's head swiveled down, and its burning red eyes locked onto us. I began shaking even harder, whether from exhaustion, the cold, fear, or all of them, I couldn't tell. It had a three-pronged crest on its head, just above its eyes, two white fins on either side of its face, and long, white whiskers curling down from behind its gaping maw.

The Gyarados glared for a second more before it took in a quick breath and let loose a bloodcurdling roar. I pedaled away from Magikarp when it did, desperate to get away from it, from the Pokemon know to raze entire cities when in a rage, from the Pokemon that now made _me_ its target. A small human boy who only had a Magikarp to defend him. A Magikarp that didn't seem at all afraid of the Gyarados, a Magikarp that seemed to even... admire it? What the _hell_?

"Magikarp!" I called out to him.

Bad move.

The sound of my voice spurred the Gyarados. With another roar, it opened its mouth and fired a jet of flame. Magikarp, fast as lightining, whirled and slammed into my stomach, knocking the air out of me and propelled me away from the Flamethrower. The Gyarados wasted no time and its tail swung around and flicked the fin at the end toward us, sending a wave of water ten feet tall at us. I barely had time to take in a breath before the wave crashed over us, sending us into the water and spinning away from one another. I finally stopped and managed to right myself before kicking toward the surface. I burst through, shaking my head to clear water form my eyes, and found I was in the shadow of something. I slowly looked up at the Gyarados, who stared at me. It growled once before rearing back, opening its jaws wider and lunged. I uttered a choked cry and raised my arms in a futile effort to defend myself when Magikarp suddenly jumped out of the water. The Gyarados was close now, and Magikarp whirled, his tail slapping the dragon in the face and knocking it aside. The Gyarados roared its anger before turning to Magikarp and firing Hydro Pump. It missed him by a hairsbreadth and he plopped back into the water next to me. The powerful jet of water slammed into the lake just ten feet away, kicking up a geyser of water and sending waves rippling away from the point of impact. I was caught up in one, and both Magikarp and I were pushed further toward the center of the lake.

I swiped a hand over my eyes to clear the water and froze. The Gyarados was gone. The waters slowly grew still. I treaded water carefully, not wanting to splash and make myself a bigger target. Magikarp floated in the water next to me, the tope half of his body showing above the surface. He turned side to side, looking out for where the Gyarados would come from. I took the lull in the fighting to briefly wonder why the Tentacruel had been here, and, for that matter, why the Gyarados was here now. Was this lake its home? If so, why did the Tentacruel come here? To take over the territory? And why was the Gyarados so aggressive? I knew Gyarados were a species that were known for being aggressive, but usually only if provoked. Did we anger it by coming into its lair? Did it maybe lay eggs around here? That was possible. I noticed that its whiskers were white, which, is I had paid attention in class correctly, meant it was female. Protecting her eggs was a definite possibility to explain why she was-

The sound of popping came from behind me. I turned and saw a shadow rapidly approaching from under the water.

"Magikarp!"

He had noticed it, too, but he could only shove me away before the Gyarados exploded from the water, crashing its head into Magikarp. He went spiraling into the air, then back down with a hard slap just a few feet in front of me.

"Magikarp!" I shouted in concern. I was horribly aware of the Gyarados watching us with what looked like contempt in its eyes as I pedaled for my Pokemon. I reached him and placed a hand on his scaled side. "Magikarp, are you okay?" In hindsight, it was a pretty stupid question, but I couldn't of what else to do. I was already exhausted, and a huge dragon towered above us, no doubt waiting for the right moment to attack.

Magikarp opened his eyes and looked up me. "Gweh-heh-heh..." His eyes slid closed and he grew still.

"_Magikarp!_" I screamed, shaking him. He didn't move. My head snapped up toward the Gyarados, whose eyes were blank. "What the hell do you want?" I screamed at it. "If you're gonna kill me, then do it already!"

Nothing. Just a blank stare. Only then did that blank stare register. I remembered it happening to surrounding Pokemon when Charmeleon and Brock's Geodude evolved. There were no Pokemon around when Karen's Pidgeotto evolved, but I noticed a pattern...

I looked down just as Magikarp's eyes snapped open. They were red. They were blue just a few moments ago. He began shaking violently, to the point where the water immediately around us vibrated. I had never seen this kind of reaction from a Pokemon before, and it scared me. I pedaled away as Magikarp gave off a white, warm glow. Then he started growing. He grew, and grew, and grew, and didn't stop. His short, stout body elongated and thickened, growing all the while. A three-pronged crest grew on his head and his mouth grew into gaping jaws.

As Magikarp grew heavier and heavier he sank further into the water until he was completely submerged. Spines grew on his back and they stuck out of the water. He thrashed a few times, smacking the Gyarados and driving it back, but it showed very little reaction.

Magikarp grew to what seemed to be _twenty five _feet long, and which point he stopped. He was under the water, and I couldn't see much, but what I could see shocked me to the core. He gently floated to the surface, revealing himself in full. He look just like the Gyarados that now seemed to have broken out of its trance. It growled and moved away when Magikarp began to rise up out of the water. He kept going, and going, until he eventually towered over the Gyarados. It gazed at my Pokemon, who gazed back, and I marveled at what just happened.

Magikarp just evolved into a Gyarados.

His tail curved around me and gently pushed me away. He glanced at me once before facing the wild Gyarados. He roared and she moved into action, her tail swinging around. Gyarados knocked it away with his head and rushed in. He clamped down onto the wild Gyarados' side and she roared in pain. Then, with titanic effort, my Gyarados lifted the wild one up and out of the water. He flicked his head and let go, sending her flying through the air. She wasn't done for, though. In mid-air she fired Hydro Pump, which stuck Gyarados square in the face and sent his head snapping back. He fell into the water, creating a wave that pushed me away.

"Gyarados!" I shouted, trying to fight the waves to get to him, afraid he was seriously injured. My worries were unfounded, though, because as the wild Gyarados fell into the water with a huge splash, mine burst through the surface, looking none the worse.

A shadow sped through the water towards us, and Gyarados' jaws opened wider. In them formed a ball of yellow energy.

_What the hell?! Don't tell me...!_

The rapidly closing in Gyarados slowly broke the surface until she was ten yards away, where she jumped up, jaws ready to close around Gyarados' neck. My Gyarados was faster, though, and he fired Hyper Beam at point blank range.

I was shoved back through the water by the force of the explosion, and the wild Gyarados was sent sailing through the air. She crashed into the bank and slid into the water a bit before stopping, half of her body in the water.

Silence.

I looked up at Gyarados, and he looked back at me.

"Is that you?"

He bent down, and I involuntarily leaned back. He stopped before slowly leaning in and tapping me with his crest.

I reach up and placed a hand along his jaw.

"Wow. I can't believe you evolved into a _Gyarados_." I paused. I broke into a grin. "That is so _awesome_."

At the other end of the lake the wild Gyarados stirred. I noticed and we watched her. She did nothing else.

"Why do you think she attacked us?"

Gyarados huffed out a breath. Just then I noticed something. On the wild Gyarados' side was something... different.

"Can you take me over there?" I asked Gyarados.

He lowered himself and I hesitated, biting my lip. "Um..." I shook my head and reached up, hauling myself up to sit on his head. When I was secure I tapped Gyarados and he raised his head. I almost fell and had to grip his crest to stay on.

Gyarados slowly made his way over to the defeated wild Gyarados. We reached her and Gyarados, keeping an eye on her, lowered his head to the bank, allowing me to slide off. I stood on the grass, sopping wet for the second time in as many days, trickling water onto the ground. I watched the injured Gyarados. Her sides rose and fell with each breath. Her eyes were open, glaring at me. I blinked when I noticed that with each exhalation, she winced. I frowned. Did Gyarados hurt her so bad that she had trouble breathing? If so, she needed medical attention. I could catch her and bring her to Nurse Joy to get her checked out... but that death glare she was burning into me made me rethink that. If I got close enough she'd probably chomp me in two.

I looked at her side again and remembered why I decided to come over here. There was something stuck to her, under a scale, it looked like. I couldn't tell what it was, and had to get closer to find out. My fingers and eye twitched at that thought. I didn't want to get any closer than I already was, but I couldn't just leave this Gyarados in pain like this.

I took a breath, letting it out slowly, and shook my head to clear the water from my vision. I took a step, hands raised, and the Gyarados growled. I stopped cold, my heart thumping, my fingers going numb. "I-It's okay, Gyarados, I'm not gonna hurt you." _But I can't be too safe_. I glanced back at my Gyarados, and he seemed to understand, giving me a nod. _Hopefully he'll be fast enough to intervene if she decides to attack..._ I gulped and took another step. She growled again but did nothing else as I moved closer. "I'm not gonna hurt you," I repeated as I reached her side. I looked up at the odd thing stuck under her scale and could see it clearly now. It looked like a branch, and a thick one at that. I could tell how thick, but it was pretty big. "That must be why you were angry. That branch was hurting you."

The wild Gyarados simply huffed out a wet breath.

"We, we should probably get rid of that, shouldn't we?" I nervously stepped closer and placed a hand on her flank. She snarled and I jumped with a yelp, backing away. "Sorry, sorry. Let's try this again." I moved toward her as my Gyarados slithered from the water onto land and came over. He watched the wild Gyarados, making sure she wouldn't try anything. I silently thanked that I actually treated him well as a Magikarp, unlike a lot of others. My mom had told me stories of people that mistreated Magikarp because they were weak, and disappeared some time later. I could only assume now that their Magikarp evolved into Gyarados and... killed them in a rage. Which was a discovery in itself. I never would have dreamed that Magikarp evolved into _Gyarados._ In school they told us that Gyarados laid Magikarp eggs, but up until now there was no proof that the weak fish evolved into such a might dragon. Most people assumed that Gyarados were born as Gyarados, but really small, and grew into their normal size. Hey, this could actually make me famous...

I blinked and shook my head to clear those distracting thoughts. I touched the Gyarados' side again, fully expecting her to lash out, but she did nothing. A little more confident with my Gyarados watching my back I reached up for the branch before realizing it was too high up, at least seven feet, and I barely past five. I looked around to see if there was anything I could do to lift me higher. As it turned out, I didn't need to, because the Gyarados stirred and rolled over. I quickly stepped away, and when she stopped I saw that the branch was now much lower as she now rested on her stomach. I looked at her, and she let out a breath. I swallowed and reached up again. I was able to grip the branch this time, wrapping my hand around it. I tugged once, and it didn't budge. I pulled again, a little harder, then again, but still nothing.

"Sorry about this," I muttered as I wrapped my other hand around the branch and yanked. I came out a little this time. Emboldened, I pulled harder, and it came out a little more. I took a few breaths, gripped the branch tighter, planted my feet firmly on the ground and pulled as hard as I could. I strained for several second, the muscles in my forearms taught with the effort, and the branch slowly, but surely, slid out. I stopped to rest, shaking my hands, before going again. I struggled to get the branch out, and, after a good fifteen seconds, it came free. I fell onto the grass, my arms flying up, with the branch still in hand. I sat up and stared at it. It was as thick around as my arm, and just as long, if not longer. No wonder the Gyarados was so pissed off. If I had something like this lodged under my nail, or something, I know I'd be pretty annoyed. I tossed the branch away, and it spun through the air before plopping into the water, where it sank.

I flexed my hands and stood, watching the Gyarados. She was looking back at me, previous aggression gone.

"Are you... okay?" I asked hesitantly.

She nodded once before looking at my Gyarados. He watched her more a moment before his imposing jaws turned up at the corners.

"Gweh-heh-heh!" he laughed, his body shaking in mirth. I cocked my head at his sudden change in demeanor. The wild Gyarados lowered her head and I turned to her. She growled gently in what I took to be a thanks.

"Um, you're welcome," I said, surprised at how docile she was acting, when just a few minutes before she was ready to kill me.

Her eyes flickered down and I followed her gaze to the Pokeballs at my belt. I looked back up at her. "No way."

She only stared unwaveringly.

"Well, um... o-okay, sure." I took an empty Pokeball and she reared back up. I rolled the capsule in my hand as I thought about it. Having one Gyarados was enough, but two? Could I handle it? I heard Gyarados could be incredibly powerful. Could I really control two of them? And what if they got angry and I lost control? I looked up at them. They were both calm now, but what would it take to make them snap?

I closed my eye and shook my head. I knew that my Gyarados wouldn't hurt me intentionally. So maybe I could control him. But another one? Did I really need two of the same kind of Pokemon? I didn't think so. I have one Water-type, don't need two. Now that I thought about it, Karen didn't have a Water-type...

I smiled and tossed the Pokeball. It slapped wetly against the wild Gyarados' underside, snapped open, and sucked her in. I marveled at how this tiny little orb, no bigger than an apple, could hold something as _huge _as a Gyarados.

The Pokeball hardly moved before there was a click. I walked over to the center of the serpentine depression in the grass and picked it up. I showed it to Gyarados and he gave his funny-sounding laugh. I smiled and turned to look around at the lake. If the Gyarados was so willing to come with me, then that must mean she didn't have any eggs around here. It might also mean that that Tentacruel would be back. Or maybe not. Maybe the Gyarados scared it off. I hadn't seen any sign of it since the female Gyarados showed up. In any case, I needed to head to and get myself some dry clothes. Again.

"Let's go back, Gyarados," I said, clipping the female's Pokeball to my belt.

He slithered into the water and came over, lowering himself so that I could climb on. He raised his head and I teetered. "Whoa, steady now..." I said under my breath.

"Gweh-heh-heh!"

I sat on Gyarados' head as he moved through the water and followed the river out of the lake.

* * *

Gyarados stopped when we reached the Pokemon Center. I slid off his head to the many weird looks I got from pedestrians, but I ignored them as I recalled Gyarados to his Pokeball.

"That was so cool," I heard someone whisper. Sounded like a girl. I rolled my eyes and stepped up toward the Center's doors, still dripping with water, and they opened just as I reached them. There, standing in the doorway, was the same teal-haired girl from the day before. I raised my eyebrows in surprised and she scowled. Now that I got a good look at her, I saw she was pretty. Very pretty.

"The hell are you staring at?" she asked, crossing her arms. She wore an orange jacket with a tall collar and white stripes going down the sleeves, dark blue tights with an orange skirt above, and black boots. She had a white pack hanging around her hips. Her long ponytail fluttered in a breeze that blew in.

I blinked. "Um..."

"Get the hell out of the way, asswipe!"

I returned her scowl, holding her glare for several seconds, before stepping to the side. Without another word the girl moved past and walked away.

"How rude!"

I turned to Karen, who watched the girl. "Sheesh, she could have been nicer about-" She stopped short when she saw me and gasped. "Jack, what happened to you!"

I looked down and lifted my arms, water sloshing down to the floor. "I got wet."

She gave me a blank look. "Yeah, I can tell. But _how_?"

I sighed. "I'll tell you later. Right now, I just want to get dry."

An hour later, after leaving our Pokemon with Nurse Joy, I sat on my bed in our room, in dry clothes, Karen next to me, as I told her about what happened, leaving out the whole thing with the female Gyarados.

When I was done, she was quiet, pursing her lips. "So it was a Tentacruel. Shoulda known. And Magikarp _evolved_ into a Gyarados? I didn't know that was possible!"

"Well, apparently it is. Oh," I said, unable to suppress a grin, "I got you something."

Her eyes lit up and she bounced closer. "Ooh, ooh, what is it? Tell me, tell me, tell me! Ooh, is it chocolate? Please tell me it's chocolate, I suddenly got a huge craving for chocolate." Each word brought her closer and closer until our noses were almost touching.

"Calm down, calm down," I said, pushing her away and looking to the side when I felt the heat in my cheeks. "No, it's not chocolate."

"What is it then?"

I grinned wider, taking the female Gyarados' Pokeball from my belt and handing it to her.

The excitement drained from her face. She took the capsule, frowning. "A Pokeball? I already have three of them, why'd you get me another one?"

I sighed. Karen could be a real ditz sometimes. "No, you idiot, it's not the Pokeball, it's what's _inside_."

"Inside?" She gasped. "Is it a chocolate Pokeball?!"

I brought my hand to my face. "No, it's not. What do you Pokeballs usually have inside of them?"

She pouted, thinking, before gasping. "A Pokemon? You got me a Pokemon?!"

I nodded.

"Ooh, what Pokemon is it? Tell me tell me tell meeee!" she shrieked, gripping my arm.

"Open it and find out."

It was only when she jumped up and enlarged the Pokeball that I realized what I said and what Pokemon was in it.

"No, wait, not in here!" I yelled frantically, leaping for her arm. For a split second I had a horrible vision of Karen sending out the Gyarados, and she would be way too big to fit in the room and crush us against the wall, unable to recall her and breaking the building.

"What, what, why?" she asked, twirling away. I fell flat on the ground and looked up at her, rubbing my nose.

"Just, trust me. Don't send it out in here."

She blinked a few times. "Um, okay. Outside, then."

We went out to the battlefield behind the Center. Karen took the Pokeball and sent out the Pokemon within. A fraction of a second later Gyarados sat on the dirt, towering over us and looking down. Karen shrieked and ran around behind me, peeking over my shoulder.

"Is that a Gyarados?!"

"No, it's a Meowth."

"You know, you can be such a jerk."

I chuckled and looked up at Gyarados. "Gyarados, this is your new Trainer, okay?"

"So it's mine?"

"Yep."

"It... it's kinda big."

"Gyarados _are _known for being big."

"I know, but... wow, it's huge."

"She won't hurt you, Karen, I promise."

I looked at her from over my shoulder and met her eyes. She looked up at the dragon then back at me.

"O-Okay." She tentatively stepped around from behind me and approached Gyarados. She lowered her head to meet Karen, who took a step back. When Gyarados did nothing else Karen slowly raised a hand and placed it on the side of the Pokemon's jaw. "She looks tough."

"That's cause she is," I said. "Almost killed me."

Karen whirled, eyes wide. "Killed you?"

I nodded, meeting Gyarados' apologetic gaze. "If it weren't for Magikarp evolving at the last second, I wouldn't be here right now."

Karen turned back to the Gyarados. I couldn't see her face, and wondered whether she would accept Gyarados. But then she turned back, grinning from ear to ear. "This is so awesome!" she yelled.

I raised an eyebrow, then both when she ran over and tackled me in a hug, knocking me several steps back.

"Thank you, thank you, _thank you_, Jack!" she shouted next to my ear, and I winced. "You got me a Gyarados, Jack! This so _awesome_! Thank you!" She then proceeded to give me two kisses on the cheek before pulling away and running back to her Gyarados. I reached up to touch the spot and smiled.

"Gotta say, I wasn't expecting _that_ reaction."

"That's cause I love the gift, Jack! Gyarados is so _cooool_!"

"Huh. Never would have pegged you for a Gyarados lover. Woulda thought that you like the cute fluffy Pokemon."

"Are you kidding? Just look at her! She looks so... so tough!" Gyarados looked a little sheepish at the compliment.

"Glad you like it," I said with a grin of my own.

"You know it! Oh, by the way," she said, turning back to me, "Misty called earlier. She said that we could come over and challenge her now."

My grin faded.

"What do you wanna do?" Karen asked. "Should we go now?"

I took a breath. Time for my second Gym battle.

"Yeah. Let's go."

* * *

**Author's Note: **Yeah. How's that for a long chapter? The next two chapters will be updated whenever I finish them. Anyway, review, plz.


	19. A Misty Battle

**Chapter 19-A Misty Battle**

...

Well, shit.

Alright, look, to all the people reading this, especially those of you that have been following this story and have had to wait these ten months, I am _so _sorry. I really have no excuse. It's just, life grabbed me by the scrotum and wouldn't let go. I've been working since December, and haven't had as much free time as I used too, especially since I've got so many games, movies, TV shows, and anime I've bought that... ugh, I know, I know, that's still no excuse.

Anyway, I hope you can forgive the enormously long wait. Hope you enjoy Jack's second Gym battle.

* * *

"Alrighty, then, here's the Gym!" Karen announced.

"Yes, I can see that. Come on, I wanna get this over with."

"Ooh, is Jack nervous?" Karen teased, sidling closer and waggling her eyebrows.

"I lost twice against the last Gym Leader. So, yeah, a little."

"Oh, don't worry about it!" Karen said, slapping my shoulder. "You'll kick Misty's butt, especially now that you have a Gyarados!"

Knowing I now had such a powerhouse of a Pokemon on my side did give me a little more confidence. "Yeah, I guess."

"Plus, you have Pikachu, and Abra knows Shock Wave, so Misty will be a cinch to beat!"

I shook my head. "I don't know about that. Misty's only a couple of years older than us, and she's good enough to be Gym Leader." I took a breath and swallowed. "She's gotta be tough."

Karen said nothing. I looked at her. She was gazing up at me. I raised my eyebrow before she leaned forward and placed a kiss on my cheek. I leaned back, my eyes wide.

"What, uh, what was that?"

"Think of it as your good luck charm," she giggled. "Now there's no way you'll lose!"

"Um..." I looked away, feeling flustered. "Thanks, I guess. C'monletsjustgo."

I quickly walked through the glass doors, passing by a receptionist counter.

"Whoa, whoa, like, who're you?"

I stopped and turned. Behind the counter was a girl of about sixteen, painting her nails a nauseating shade of pink. She wore an orange dress and had long blonde hair. Except for the hair, I couldn't help note the resemblance to Misty.

"Um, I'm here for a Gym battle."

"Oh, so you're the boy Misty was going on about!"

The girl jumped up and moved around the counter.

"My, you certainly are as cute as she said."

My eye twitched. My eyes flickered to Karen, who was watching with a frown, then to the floor. "Um, I'm here for my Gym battle," I repeated.

"Alright, so, like, come with me!"

The girl turned, holding her hands out while her nails dried, and sauntered down the corridor toward the pool that would be the battlefield.

"Well, now I can see where Misty gets that walk of hers," I heard Karen mutter.

We followed the girl through the doors and into the pool area. There was splashing in the water, and a blonde head bobbed up to the surface. It was a girl, and she looked exactly like the one just in front of us. Twins?

"Ugh, Lily, why do you have to, like, swim in the pool where we have the Pokemon?"

The girl in the pool looked up at her sister and pouted. "Because the people pool is so far away!" The girl hauled herself up and sat at the edge of the pool, her long hair plastered to her back. "Besides, Violet, it's fun swimming with the Pokemon." The girl stood. She wore a purple two piece swimming suit. "Who're they?"

"Oh, this," the girl, Violet, stepped aside, still mindful of her nails, "is that cute challenger our little sis was talking about."

"Ooh, he really is cute!" The other girl, Lily, leaned in and pinched my cheek. "I could just eat him up!"

I reached up and calmly pried her hand from my face, horribly aware of my blush. "I-I'd like to challenge Misty to a Gym battle."

Lily threw an arm around my shoulders. "Aw, come on, you don't, like, think I'm pretty?"

"I fail to see what that has anything to do with this," I said quickly, _very_ mindful of her chest on my shoulder.

"Aw, look at 'im, he's, like, totally blushing!" Lily squealed.

"That's so cute!"

"Alright, alright, that's enough," Karen snapped, stepping between us. "We're here for a Gym battle, not a tease-fest."

The twins Violet and Lily looked at Karen, eyes wide.

"Well, someone's a little bossy."

"Yeah, like, totally!"

"Whatever." Lily turned and hollered, "Misty! Your little boyfriend's here!"

There was only the sound of the pool water lapping against the edge before a voice came floating back from beyond a doorway at the other end of the room.

"Dammit, Lily, he is _not _my boyfriend! He was such an irritating jackass and I'm still pissed that he beat Kasumi so easily!"

Misty appeared at the doorway, wearing a swimsuit with a leather belt hanging loosely around her waist, with three Pokeballs clipped to them. She was wet with her hair hanging freely, and stopped. "Jack! You're here! I'm sorry, I thought it was that spiky-haired kid. Yeesh, he was so rude. Just beat Kasumi and left, calling me a kid and her weak."

"Gary," Karen and I said at once.

Misty blinked. "You know him?" she asked, coming over to us.

"Unfortunately," I sighed.

"He's a jackass," Karen said. "Sorry about him."

"Whatever. I doubt I'll ever see him again," she said, walking over. "So, Jack, you ready for your _official _Gym battle with me?"

I nodded. "I am. But, uh, are you gonna battle in that?" I pointed out her red two piece swimsuit and she looked down.

"Oh, this. I was just doing some laps in our pool. Didn't have time to change."

I shrugged. "Whatever."

"Ooh, Misty!" Violet cooed. "You're gonna let this cute boy see you in a bikini like this?"

"Yeah, Misty," Lily said, "why would you do that? Unless he's your _boyfriend_!"

The twins giggled and Misty's cheeks filled with color. "Sh-shut up and go away. This is official Gym business!"

"Oh, you're, like, just as bossy as this girl," Violet said, indicating Karen. "Come on, Lily, let's go shopping."

"Like, totally!"

With that, Misty's twin sisters sauntered off.

"'Yeah, like, let's totally go shopping!'" Misty trilled, imitating them. "Jeez, they really get on my nerves." She turned to me. "Sorry about that. They can be really annoying. So, let's do this!"

I nodded, and without preamble Misty turned and dove into the pool. I stepped back as the water splashed up, covering the floor at the edge in water. I saw Misty's form glide under the water and she was soon at the other side. She surfaced, pulling herself out. She shook the water from her hair and grinned.

"Ready whenever you are!"

"Kick her ass."

I turned and raised an eyebrow at Karen's uncharacteristically sharp tone. She didn't look my way, instead heading to sit at the bleachers that lined the edge of the Gym. I frowned but took my spot across from the young Gym Leader.

She smirked and tossed a Pokeball out. It popped open and Seel fell into the water.

I took my own Pokeball and sent out Pikachu.

"Aha, going for the type advantage! That's what I figured. Time to show you that type advantages don't always decide a fight! Seel, Ice Beam!"

"Move!"

Seel fired the Ice-type attack from its mouth and it arced toward Pikachu. At my command he zipped away, hopping onto another floating platform.

"Headbutt!"

Seel dove underwater, and shortly after leapt out of the water and onto the platform. The Pokemon slid toward Pikachu with unrelenting speed, head lowered.

"Block with Iron Tail!"

Pikachu whirled, slapping his tail against Seel's head. The impact stopped the Water-type and even sent it sliding back a few feet. It shook his head, dazed, and I commanded Pikachu to use Thundershock.

"Ice Beam!" Misty cried.

Our Pokemon fired their attacks and they collided above the green platform. The Electric attack crackled as chunks of ice suddenly solidified at the point of impact and were knocked into the water by the force of the attacks.

The Thundershock suddenly broke through the Ice Beam, hitting Seel. It was knocked back with a squeal of pain, and fell into the water.

"It's okay, Seel, shake it off!" Misty called. "Seel's tough, she won't be taken out by a single Thundershock!"

True to her word, Seel popped back up, looking none the worse for wear.

"Ice Beam!"

The beam of frigid energy flew toward Pikachu, and I called for him to use Thundershock again. The attacks collided, and like before, chunks of ice fell into the pool around the point of impact. I noticed that they sparked, but my attention was drawn away when Misty called out another attack.

"Water Pulse!"

Seel launched a ball of water at Pikachu and he jumped to the side. I thought he was safe, but the ball struck the platform and burst, sending a small wave of water around it in a circle. It struck Pikachu, knocking him back to the very edge of the platform. He got up, the water sliding off to go into the pool, and I knew right away something was wrong. Pikachu tottered on his feet, shaking his head constantly.

"Dammit, he's confused," I muttered.

"Alright! Seel, finish him, Headbutt!"

Seel dove then, dashed forward, then leaped out of the water. But she was way too far from the platform. Before I could ask myself why she jumped now, she opened her mouth and fired Ice Beam, The Ice attack slapped the water, freezing it. She plopped onto the ice, sliding forward on her stomach, without letting up on the Ice Beam. She kept moving forward, creating a pathway made of ice, leading up to the platform where Pikachu was still trying to regain his senses. Just as the Ice Beam froze the water at the edge of the platform Seel let up and lowered her head to hit Pikachu.

She was closing in fast, and in a desperate attempt to counterattack, I called out, "Iron Tail!"

Thankfully, it seemed to register, because Pikachu spun. I held no hope that he would actually connect with Seel, though. Which was why I almost whooped when he did. The Iron Tail slammed solidly across the top of Seel's head, bringing a squeal from her. The attack crashed into her head, and it redirected her off to the side, where she careened into the water.

I could see her form dash away underwater, away from Pikachu. He shook his head, ears flopping, before looking across the water as Seel surfaced, no longer confused.

"Ice Beam!"

_She seems to like using Ice Beam a lot..._

"Thundershock!"

The attacks met, and again bits of ice solidified, falling into the water, drifting apart.

_ Maybe they could reduce Seel's mobility?_

I studied the ice, the wisps of a plan manifesting in my head. _Some of them were sparking..._

"You seem really fond of using Ice Beam," I called across the pool.

Misty smirked. "'Course I am! Ice Beam is Seel's strongest move, and it took us a long time for her to master it. No way am I gonna waste all that time training and not use it! Ice Beam on the rafts!"

"What?!"

Seel fired the Ice attack. It hit the six other rafts in the pool, freezing them over.

_Dammit, now she's trying to limit_ my _movement. If Pikachu tries to get onto one of those rafts, he'll slip and fall into the water, leaving him open for an attack. Gonna have to stay on this one._

"Headbutt!"

Seel flitted underwater. I waited for her to come back up. She didn't. I raised an eyebrow before seeing a form zooming toward the surface under Pikachu's raft.

"Jump!" I shouted.

Pikachu seemed to understand what was happening because he did so immediately just as Seel bashed into the raft from underneath, sending it flying into the air. It flipped around as Pikachu fell, flopping down onto the water just before he slapped down onto it. Almost immediately he slipped and slid toward the edge. I clenched my jaw, thinking that he was going to fall right in to the water.

Pikachu stopped just short of the edge, though, and he scrambled back to the center, doing his best to keep his balance on the slippery surface of the raft as it drifted closer to me.

"Ice Beam!" Misty called.

Seel leaped out of the water, the icy energy zooming toward Pikachu. I called for him to use Thundershock again. The result this time was a little different, though.

The Ice Beam wasn't on a course straight for Pikachu. Instead it hit the raft at Pikachu's feet. The top of it was wet, and ice quickly spread over it, faster than Pikachu could react while he was in mid-attack. Since the Ice Beam wasn't aimed at Pikachu, his Thundershock hit Seel head-on. She squealed, spasming before falling back into the water. I turned my attention back to Pikachu.

"Damn it..."

The raft had completely frozen over. The ice had spread across the surface, extending into the water a bit, and over Pikachu's feet. Even as he struggled to break free, I could see there was no way to. He was trapped on the raft.

"Sweet! Seel, Water Pulse!"

Seel popped her head from the water and fired the bulb of water again straight at Pikachu. Reacting on impulse, and seeing no other alternative, I shouted for Pikachu to duck. To both mine and Misty's surprise, it actually worked. The Water Pulse sailed clear over Pikachu's lowered head. It kept going, and I thought that telling Pikachu to duck might not have been the smartest move.

I had time to utter, "Crap," before the Water Pulse slammed into me, knocking me clear off my feet and sending me sliding across the wet floor, drenched.

"Jack!" I heard Karen cry.

"Oh my God, Jack, I'm so sorry!"

"It's fine," I groaned, sitting up. "Let's just keep going."

"Are... are you sure?" Misty asked.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine. Come on." Pikachu as gazing at me in concern, his ear twitching. "I'm okay, Pikachu. Let's go." I wasn't completely fine, though. I could feel the beginnings of anger coiling up in my sure-to-be-bruised-in-the-morning chest, anger that spurred me into action.

He nodded and faced Seel at the other end of the pool.

"Um, okay. If you're sure."

"Of course I'm sure. Thundershock!"

"Into the water, Seel!"

Seel ducked into the water, the electric attack zooming harmlessly above the surface. She popped up again, and I yelled for Thundershock once more. The Water-type submerged herself again, the attack from Pikachu again passing above. It kept going like that for several more attempts until I realized that I was abandoning any sort of strategy in favor of shooting wildly, trying to hit the quick Water-type. I realized it too late, though, because when Pikachu tried to fire off another Thundershock, all that happened was that his cheeks sparked a couple of times. His eyes widened, squeaking in shock, before he tried again when Seel popped out of the water. She seemed to know what was going on, though, because she didn't move an inch as Pikachu's cheeks only sparked once again.

"Ha! Looks like Pikachu's run out of electricity to shoot!" Misty called.

I clenched my fist. _Dammit, I didn't know this could happen! I should have expected this, I guess, but for it to happen now, in the middle of a Gym Battle? Dammit!_

"Gonna have to use physical attacks then," I muttered, before wincing at Pikachu's frozen feet.

"Looks like this is it for Pikachu!" Misty taunted, jabbing a finger at him. "Seel, Headbutt!"

Seel obediently dove underwater, rushing toward Pikachu. I grit my teeth, beginning to panic, just a little. Pikachu wasn't able to use his only ranged attack, and he didn't have the mobility to use any of his physical attacks either. _Dammit, dammit, dammit, what do I do think Jack what do I do?! _

Seel came closer and closer. Any second now she would jump out of the water and hit a defenseless Pikachu. He knew it, too, judging by how he was tensed up, his tail twitching and his little paws trembling.

_Dammit, what do I do?!_

By chance I glanced at his tail again. I only gave a cursory notice that half of it was in the water, before looking up. Then it hit me that it was halfway in the water, and I looked sharply down again.

I only had a few seconds to act on the idea, and I jumped on it.

"Pikachu, paddle away with your tail!"

He jumped, was still for a long second, then twisted his body, swinging his tail through the water. I had expected the action to propel Pikachu to the side and out of harm's way, but what actually ended up happening was that he spun the raft around. It was enough, though.

Seel leapt out of the water before Pikachu managed to dodge it. She soared through the air, giving a surprised grunt at Pikachu's evasion, before colliding head-on with one of the floating chunks of sparking ice. She instantly squealed as electricity from the chunk of ice sparked and jumped to her, sending her reeling away through the water.

"What the- Seel!"

Seel managed to stop herself before shaking her head a few times and whimpering.

"Seel, you okay?" When Seel whined in answer Misty turned to ask me, "What the hell was that?"

I had to resist the powerful urge to smirk. If I was some character in a TV show or movie or something, this was where I would start yapping, giving away my strategy, which would inevitably lead to her turning it on me and beating me.

Yeah, like I was _that_ stupid.

With Misty still trying to recover, I shouted for Pikachu to use Thundershock. The attack hit Seel dead on, knocking her away as she squealed, right into chunk of ice. There was a sharp crack just before Seel careened away.

"Seel, watch out!"

Seel recovered in time to look around her at the ice that slowly drifted closer and closer to her. She whimpered, waiting for a shocked Misty to give her a command.

"Dammit, um... Seel, dive under them!"

I ordered Pikachu to use Thundershock before Misty could even finish her command. Seel's squeal was more of a screech as she flew back, straight into another ice floe. As soon as she hit it, it sparked, shocking her and knocking her into another one, then into another one, and another, until she was ricocheting off of every one like a pinball.

A few seconds later she hit another one, but it didn't spark, which let Seel slide back into the water, panting.

"Seel? You okay?" Misty asked tentatively.

Seel only whined.

Misty sighed. She recalled Seel to her Pokeball, then looked at me.

"Wow, Jack, I've never seen anything like _that_. I'm impressed!"

I said nothing, glancing over at Karen. She was grinning.

"You're pretty good, Jack, but Pikachu's on his last leg. He's used a lot of electricity, he might not have a lot left. He won't last very long against this one!"

She tossed out another Pokeball, releasing an indigo-colored turtle, about three feet tall, with a long, wispy tail and similarly shaped ears. At least, I think they were ears.

"Wartortle, start off with Bubblebeam!"

"Thundershock!"

I knew Misty was right about Pikachu, but I still expected a little more than a weak bolt that bounced off Wartortle when it withdrew into its shell.

"Whirlpool!"

"Oh, hell."

Wartortle, still inside its shell, started spinning, quickly gaining speed, until it look like a brown top at the center of a cone of water that got deeper and deeper. Pikachu's raft was almost instantly sucked in, spiraling around and around until he was almost at the bottom. When he was close to hitting the spinning Wartortle, it suddenly stopped and dove, quickly disappearing under the frothing water.

"Dammit, I can't see it! Pikachu, keeps your eyes-"

I stopped when I noticed Misty's smirk. I looked at Pikachu and cursed. It seemed that all the whirling around got to him because he was far dizzier than he ever was when taking a direct Water Pulse.

"Damn..." I growled.

Misty used Whirlpool to disorient Pikachu while using the rapidly spinning water as cover for her Pokemon. Now, even if I did see where Wartortle was coming from, which was very unlikely, Pikachu wouldn't be able to do much of anything with how dizzy he was.

No wonder she was Gym Leader

"Now, Wartortle, Skull Bash!"

My eyes instinctively flicked toward the water underneath Pikachu, which was slowing down, but still going at a good speed, as his raft was propelled along. What I failed to take into account was the fact that Pikachu was still some ways down a cone, with water that came to be about three feet above him. As the water slowed, the cone began to level out, and that's when it struck.

I didn't so much as catch a glimpse of its shadow before Wartortle burst out of the water, head first, and slammed into Pikachu. He cried in pain as the ice around his feet was shattered from the impact and he was sent hurtling through the air and into the water, Wartortle splashing in just a few feet away.

"Pikachu!"

I took a step forward, as if to jump into the water, but, for some absurdly ridiculous reason, stopped when I thought of my Pokedex and how I didn't want to screw it up again. I stood there, frozen, staring into the water, watching for any sign of Pikachu. Karen had stood up, hand up to a slightly open mouth. Misty, though, was as calm as could be. For a brief, absolutely insensible second, I thought she had planned it.

A full six seconds passed, and I was already shrugging off my backpack, when the water at my feet rippled. A lumpy shadow rose and broke the surface.

It was Wartortle, with Pikachu on its back.

"Pikachu!"

I scooped him up, cradling him.

"You did great, Pikachu."

He let out a weak squeak before I recalled him to his Pokeball. I replaced it back on my belt belt and took another one. I wanted to finish this as soon as possible, so I figured that he would be able to take Wartortle quickly.

I enlarged the Pokeball before pressing the button again as I extended my arm out. The capsule snapped open in my hand, and Gyarados' form slid into the water with a splash. He surface and reared up, towering over Wartortles.

Misty gasped. "Holy _crap_, since when do you have a _Gyarados_?"

"Since this morning. Hydro Pump!"

"Crap, dive!"

Wartortle just barely managed to duck under the surface before the powerful jet of water slammed into the spot where it had been, kicking up a small geyser.

"Wartortle's tough, Jack! There's no way she'll be beat easily!"

Before I could warn Gyarados, Wartortle hurtled out of the water to his right. She retreated into her shell just before smashing into Gyarados' face. He bellowed, whirling to snap at her, but before he could reach her her head popped out and she spewed a jet of water at him from her mouth. It hit Gyarados in the side of the head, sending him reeling to the left.

"Hydro Pump!" I shouted just as Wartortle fell back into the water.

Gyarados fired the powerful jet of water where Wartortle had gone into the water, throwing up another geyser and sending out waves from the point of impact.

"Now!" Misty suddenly shouted.

Across the the pool Wartortle bobbed up and immediately began spinning. It didn't take long for her to create a whirlpool like she had done before. This one, though, seemed to be going a lot faster than the one she made when battling Pikachu, fast enough to be pulling Gyarados in toward it.

"Damn, fight it, Gyarados!"

Gyarados started swimming backward as fast as he could, but I could already see there was no use, the whirlpool was just too fast and strong. I was just about to give him a desperate command of Hydro Pump when I stopped. His tail fin was caught in the current that raged clockwise, and Gyarados was swimming counter-clockwise. I wasn't entirely sure, but it seemed that the whirlpool was going just a little slower...

"Gyarados, jump into the whirlpool and swim in the other direction!"

"Huh?"

"Jack, what are you doing?"

I ignored Karen's question as Gyarados unquestioningly dove into the whirlpool. I guess it was his size that kept him from being swept away that easily. He only struggled for a little until he started moving counter-clockwise in the water.

Misty's eyes widened as she realized what I was trying to do because she shouted for Wartortle to spin faster.

Even if the turtle really did move any faster, it didn't do much good because Gyarados had built up speed faster than I expected, probably because he was so much bigger, and already the whirlpool was slowing.

"Faster, Wartortle!"

But by now the raging current had been reduced to some choppy waters, and both of our Pokemon had fallen beneath the surface.

A shadow suddenly shot up, and out came Gyarados, hitting Wartortle up with his head. She was still in her shell, probably disoriented, when Gyarados' tail slammed into her from above. She rocketed back into the water, Gyarados plunging in after her. A moment later a geyser of water shot up into the air, with Wartortle at the top. The water dispersed, Wartortle, still in her shell, began to fall, and Gyarados broke the surface. His tail came around and smashed into the smaller Pokemon, sending her flying in a diagonal direction.

Wartortle skipped on the surface twice before hitting the tiled floor to Mist's left. She kept going, spinning all the while, before bumping into the wall twenty feet behind her trainer. She came spinning back until she came halfway between the wall and her trainer, where she slowly came to a stop. When the final quivers finished, she lay still for a few seconds before popping out of her shell, unable to continue.

"Holy _crap_..." Misty breathed, giving Gyarados a nervous glance as he drifted over to me. Misty returned her Pokemon to her Ball before facing me. "Wow. I knew Gyarados were strong, but to actually stop Wartortle's Whirlpool? _Damn_..."

I stayed silent, waiting for her to send out her next Pokemon so that I could pound into the ground. Eh, water.

"Not gonna gloat?" Misty asked, enlarging another Pokeball. "That's a first. I've never seen anyone not take the chance to gloat after beating a Gym Leader's Pokemon like that."

"I don't like to gloat," I responded simply.

"Really? Cool. Then I guess I won't beat you so badly for being an ass."

With that, she sent out her next Pokemon, one that I was expecting since Karen told me about it last night.

To my surprise, Starmie didn't go into the water. Instead, it floated a couple of feet above it, the five arms on the rear occasionally spinning one way, then the other.

"I'll start off! Starmie, Water Pulse!"

Starmie's three upper arms bent forward, a ball of water collecting between the points, and fired at Gyarados. As I told Gyarados to raise his tail to block it, Misty suddenly shouted, "Psychic!"

_Dammit, it was a distraction! _

At least, that's what I thought. Gyarados had braced himself for the Psychic attack, but nothing happened. It took me longer to noticed that the Water Pulse was hovering in the air in front of Gyarados, and by the time I did Starmie was already spinning toward Gyarados. It slammed into Gyarados, knocking him back. Before he could recover Starmie stopped, the red jewel at its center flashed, and the Water Pulse was thrown from where it had stopped in mid-air and into Gyarados' face. The force of the impact sent him reeling back again, bumping into the pool's edge.

"Gyarados!"

An invisible force slammed into his back, knocking him forward, as Starmie came at him. Gyarados took advantage of the momentum to lunge forward, jaws wide. Starmie was too quick, though, sharply veering to the right. But it wasn't fast enough to avoid Gyarados' tail as it swung around and crashed into it, sending it plummeting into the waters below.

Seeing an opening, I called for Gyarados to use Hyper Beam.

The ball that quickly formed in his mouth exploded forward into the water after Starmie, the huge power behind it rumbling the ground and kicking up a spray of pool water. Karen squealed as it rained on her, but neither Misty nor I reacted much. We glared at one another as the water stopped falling.

It was as we stared at each other that I realized Misty wasn't being completely serious until now. Up until now, she was having fun, not entirely taking me seriously as a challenger, even when I sent out Gyarados.

Not anymore. Now, seeing how two of her Pokemon were down, and Starmie could be defeated soon as well, she wasn't going to play around any more. She might have been good enough to be named Gym Leader, but this was her first actual battle as one. I had a feeling that this battle wasn't the only thing on the line for her. It was also the reputation of her, her sister, the Gym, and maybe even Cerulean itself.

I braced myself for the onslaught that would probably come.

"Starmie!" Misty shouted.

A powerful force hit Gyarados in the back, pushing him forward toward the center of the pool that was missing about a foot of water. I noticed a shadow flit underwater and was about to command him to use Hydro Pump into the water when the Psychic attack hit Gyarados underneath his chin.

"Rapid Spin!"

Starmie shot out of the water, spinning furiously, and slammed into Gyarados' underbelly, knocking the breath out of him. My mind raced, trying to find a way to counter that attack, when Misty shouted, "Now!"

I stopped cold when sparks jumped over one of Starmie's arms.

_No, no no no, no way, no _way_!_

Misty's smirk grew wider.

Gyarados looked down at his opponent, puzzled.

Starmie unleashed a powerful jolt of electricity from its body, still touching Gyarados. He roared in pain, convulsing, before Starmie let up and whirled away as Gyarados slowly slid into the water. He bobbed to the surface shortly after, heaving breaths, unable to go on.

I stared in blank disbelief even while Karen shouted, "No way, it just used an Electric attack!"

_What... what just... Gyarados was defeated... Starmie used _Thunderbolt_?!_

"How the hell is that possible?" I called to Misty as she triumphantly put her hands on her hips. "Since when can a Water-type use _Electric _attacks?!"

"Tsk tsk, Jack, you really should keep up with the studies."

"What?"

"Jack, Pokemon are always giving us even more mysteries and keep revealing new secrets to us! For example, it's been discovered that certain Water-type Pokemon can actually use Electric attacks without hurting themselves! Man, it really paid off teaching Starmie to use Thunderbolt!"

"Dammit!" I spat out through clenched teeth before I recalled Gyarados.

I let myself get overconfident because I had a Gyarados, thinking that I could handle anything Misty threw at me. But how the hell was I supposed to have known that Starmie of hers would know _Thunderbolt_?

There's no way I could ever use Charmeleon in a battle like this, so now Abra was my only choice.

I slowly took his Pokeball and expanded it when I felt something prodding at my mind. I looked at the capsule before sending out Abra. To my surprise, he didn't need to stand on any of the rafts. Instead, he levitated a few feet above the water, his voice reverberating in my head.

_I am ready to fight for you, Master._

"I'll be counting on you, Abra."

"Oh, Abra's okay! I'm so glad!" Misty said, giving us a thumbs up. "Challenger gets first move, so let's see what he can do!"

I quickly went through a mental list of Abra's attack moves. I was about to command Abra to use Shock Wave, but stopped at the last second, thinking that maybe I should save that move for last. I could catch her by surprise with the Electric-attack. Instead...

"Shadow Ball!"

Abra brought his hands close together, a dark, murky blob about the size of my fist forming between his palms, and fired it at Starmie.

Misty commanded Starmie to dodge it, but despite the Pokemon spinning to move out of the way, the Shadow Ball slammed into it dead-center, right on the red jewel.

Starmie spiraled away with a loud hiss before turning on a dime and zooming straight for Abra. My mouth opened to give him command, but I hesitated. Starmie was closing in fast, too fast for Abra to be able to shoot off another Shadow Ball.

I felt a strange prodding in my head, and it took me a second to realize that it was Abra, trying to read my mind. He must been able to find out what I wanted him to do, because just before Starmie could slam into him with Rapid Spin he suddenly blurred away.

Misty and Karen gasped and my eyes opened.

"Crap, I shouldn't figured he'd use Teleport!" Misty cried.

Abra reappeared closer to Misty's side of the pool, directly above the frozen raft Pikachu had been on.

"Starmie, Psybeam!"

"Shadow Ball!"

From the red jewel on Starmie came a fast, undulating beam that seemed to shimmer in the colors of a rainbow, heading straight for Abra. The murky blob took a few seconds to form, and I was about to yell for him to cancel the attack and Teleport away when he fired it. The attacks collided, but instead of dispersing or shattering or something, the Shadow Ball instantly tore right through the colored beam. The remains of the Psybeam rained over the pool before disappearing as the Shadow Ball slammed into Starmie.

"Starmie!" Misty shouted in concern. She looked at me. "What happened just now?"

I shook my head. "I have no idea." That was a lie. I thought that it might have had something to do with the fact that Shadow Ball was a Ghost-type move while Psybeam was Psychic-type...

"Argh, whatever! Starmie, Recover!"

"What?!"

Starmie drifted away before a soft light enveloped it. I could see that, slowly, the bruises on the Pokemon appendages were disappearing.

"No way. It just _healed _itself?!" Karen cried.

"Now, Starmie, Ice Beam!"

Like with Water Pulse, Starmie's top three arms bent forward, only this time a ball of frigid energy formed in them before Starmie fired it at Abra.

Before I could actually tell him to Teleport, I felt that same sensation in my head, and Abra immediately disappeared. I frowned, beginning to get inklings of some idea.

When Abra reappeared in front of me I reached out to him with my mind.

_Abra, what other moves do you know?_

_ Calm Mind, Double Team, and Safeguard._

I raised my eyebrows. _Wow. Impressive._

_ Thank you, Master._

_ Don't call me that._

_ As you wish, Master._

"Bubblebeam!"

The three arms bent forward, and from the tips came a barrage of bubbles the size of my head. They were way faster than I expected, moving almost as fast as the Psybeam it had used earlier.

Again, before I could speak the command for Double Team, Abra had already split into six, and each one was zooming forward, dodging around the bubbles. They weren't completely unscathed, though. One bubble hit one Abra, popping with surprising force. Abra gave a cry, and I almost shouted in concern before that one dissipated.

Soon, the remaning five Abra were out of the cloud of bubbles, closing in on Starmie. Then they all suddenly Teleported away before appearing again, surrounding Starmie, except now there were seven of them.

"Dammit, which one's the real one?" Misty cried.

"Beats me," I responded, a smirk threatening to spread on my face. "Calm Mind!"

"Oh, no you don't! Hit 'em all with Water Pulse!"

The Abra crossed their legs, brought theirs hands close, and lowered their heads, as Starmie began firing Water Pulse after Water Pulse after Water Pulse. One by one, the fake Abra were destroyed, and as each one disappeared my gut clenched, fearing that each attack would hit the real one.

I got lucky, though, because all six clones were destroyed, leaving the real one still using Calm Mind.

"There, that's the real one!" Misty shouted. "Thunderbolt!"

Sparks flew and Starmie fired the Electric attack before I could tell Abra to Teleport. The attack hit him dead on, knocking him out of the air. Abra plummeted to the water, and it was then that I realized that he hadn't reacted at all when he was hit. No pained cry, no convulsing, nothing.

Before he could hit the water he caught himself in mid-air, whirled, and hurled a Shadow Ball at Starmie.

"Crap!" was all Misty could say before the attack hit Starmie in the jewel. This time, though, the Shadow Ball _exploded_, the boom shocking Misty enough that she couldn't come up with a counter-attack.

"Now, Abra!"

Deciding to work on the inkling I got earlier, I gave my next command in thought.

_Shock Wave!_

Abra instantly Teleported away, appearing behind Starmie, and brought his hands up. His palms sparked and twin bolts of blue lighting arced toward a disoriented Starmie. The Pokemon convulsed, and I could hear hissing underneath the crackling of the electricity. Abra stopped his attack when the hissing stopped a good three seconds later, letting Starmie fall into the water below. It floated on the surface, unmoving.

I looked at Misty. She stared open-mouthed at her defeated Pokemon, silent,

Karen suddenly started cheering, hopping up and down on the bleachers, before running over to me.

"Hey, slow down!" I said, holding up my hands to signal her to stop.

Of course, she didn't listen, and as soon as she stepped on the water that had splashed out of the pool, her feet slid out from under her, knocking her on her butt.

"Owww!" she groaned, carefully standing up. "That hurt!"

"I told you to slow down, didn't I?" I helped her up.

She was rubbing the sore area when laughter drifted over to us. Misty was doubled over, laughing so hard I though she might slip and fall into the pool.

"Hey, shut up!" Karen shouted, her cheeks full of color. "I-It was an accident! It could happen to anyone!"

"Not if they have some common sense."

Karen whirled. "You shut up, too!"

"Oh, come on, Karen, everyone knows you shouldn't run next to pool, especially one that had a battle going on in it."

Karen huffed and turned away, arms crossed. "I _was _gonna congratulate you on beating Misty, but you can forget about that now, mister!"

"Am I supposed to care?" I deadpanned.

"Shut up!" Misty was still laughing, although not as hard, and Karen turned toward her. "You shut up, too!"

"I-I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Misty managed to get out. She reined her laughter before giving a deep sigh. "Sorry about laughing like that. I just needed that." Misty recalled her Starmie, clipping it's Pokeball to her belt before diving the water. A little afterward she climbed out of the water onto the deck next to us.

"I, uh, was actually kinda stressed, especially these last few days. Taking your big sister's position of Gym Leader can be... well, it can put a lot of pressure on you."

I scowled. Can't say I couldn't relate, at least a little, with my dad being a Gym Leader...

"And I guess being a Gym Leader kinda went to my head a little." She laughed, hand behind her head. "I'm disappointed I lost, for sure, but I think I could have used it to knock me down a bit."

Abra Teleported next to me, levitating toward me. He lowered himself into my arms, panting.

_Tired, Master. Want to rest..._

He fell asleep right away.

"Wow, doing all that must have tired him out," Karen noted, peering at him.

"Gotta say," Misty said, moving a bit closer, "I'm really surprised that he was able to win a match like this after just getting better. He's pretty strong, ain't he?"

I scowled. "Yeah. He is. I guess having a Trainer before he was abandoned had something to do with it."

"Yeah," Misty trailed off, frowning. "Well, anyway, here."

Misty reached into a small pouch I hadn't noticed hanging from her belt. She pulled something out and held it out. In her palm was a small, blue dewdrop-shaped metal badge.

"Here ya go, Jack!" she said, beaming. "You've won the Cascade Badge."

I grinned back and took the badge. I showed to Karen and she beamed, too.

"Congratulations, Jack!"

"Yeah. Great battle. And, thanks." Misty held out her hand. I slipped my new badge into my pocket and shook her hand.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Again, I am so sorry that you all had to wait since... fuck, since before Assassin's Creed 3 even came out. Holy _crap_ that is a long time. Please forgive me, everyone. I'll have the next chapter up whenever I can finish it in between writing my novel.

Also, I've rewritten some of the first chapter of this. Check it out, if you want, although be warned there's not too much different from the original chapter I uploaded almost... damn, three years ago now. My, how time flies...


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